Five years from the 18th of June of 1961 until the 18th of June of 1965 went by. Apparitions were of daily frequency, and many times several in the same day. They could last just few minutes, or a couple of hours, in the morning, at night or at dawn, full of richness and variety, and a great number of associated phenomena that had a personal meaning for the people who were present.

Ecstasy

The little girls were raptured in spirit out of the surrounding world, and were dived into a different atmosphere - heaven? - where they felt pleased with the presence of a powerful and omnipresent light; their weight and the colour of their skin changed, and they were reported to be absolutely insensitive to any human test. Their weight increased so much that it was completely impossible to lift them up from the floor when they were on their knees. Their faces changed completely, became even more beautiful, and their skin reached the tonality of an almost transparent colour. Without seeing what they had around, with their eyes fixed onto the sky, their heads dropped back in a right angle, they were a show really nice to look at.

Snowflakes, hailstorm felt on their faces without leaving in them trace of harm at all; always with a smiling look, looking at a different heaven, no matter how long.

The ecstasy runnings (fast movements in ecstasy) didn4t altered their pulse in spite of their lenght, all along the village, up and down the pines, at incredible speed, night and day, alone or accompanied. Many who followed them, felt shocked by not being able to keep up with their pace going down the slope of the mountain facing, while the girls did it from behind in the dark, rushing through uneven paths where it is difficult to set a foot well, even if you are going slowly and looking ahead.

There were people who experienced with the children, who were absent of anything, pricking them with differents instruments, placing lighted cigarrettes on their skin, and training powerful torches very closely on their eyes, without causing even a blink on them. They never gave away the slightest contractoin or sign of pain on their countenances.

The falls on trance were frequent. Sometimes the four of them at the same time, sometimes not. They would remain in sculptural positions of great beauty, never indecorous or incorrect. In spite of their short age, the four children never were frightened. At midday, at three o4clock in the early morning they would go out of their homes in trance and wander all around the village all the same, to the Church, the cemetery, or to the Pines.

On many occasions strange movements took place. One of the girls went to the Church and came from it several yards in a sitting position. Witnesses were so much thrilled that many cried. Her clothes, which covered her down to her knees, didn4t move even a notch, and previously nobody had touched her. Later on it was revealed that her dress was perfectly clean. There were also levitations, and other spectacular movements. A lot of people different in age, culture, and whereabouts, can give evidence of it.

Personal meaning signs

Many people gave medals and wedding rings to the children to be kissed by the Blessed Virgin, and usually the task was delegated to one person who would offer these items and assume responsability for all the group. However, the little girls, completely without knowledge of this, would address unerringly every single owner and put them softly and accurately back around necks and fingers to the amazement of everyone. On one occasion, one of the girls was corrected by the Blessed Virgin when she was about to put a wedding ring on its owner4s right hand. This impressed him deeply as he understood that the Blessed Virgin had realized that he was a catalan and that he used to wear it on the left one.

On another ocassion, a person who was present in the village gave Conchita a powder-box to be kissed by the Blessed Virgin. People who saw it were shocked, although they kept it in silence, that Our Lady could kiss a profane object. As soon as the ecstasy was over, they asked the visionary how she had done it, and Conchita answered: "Our Lady has told me that this article was used as a tabernacle to carry the Body of her Son during the Spanish Civil War in order tor give the Holy Sacrament to the sick and to other people". The person who brought the article acknowledged this revelation.

Locutions

At times without seeing the image, they would feel and hear internally Jesus4 or Mary4s voice, an experience that they considered higher or preferable to apparitions, in which they would see their beloved One more distant. Anyway, - they stated with absolute certainty - they preferred even more receiving Jesus in the Holy Sacrament. Perfect Theology given the children4s precarious education, in those days!

The Miracle of the Sacred Host

One of the most insistent points of Garabandal4s message is to wake us up to the mistery and greatness of the Eucharist. So, this was a very intentional miracle. It was announced 15 days in advance and that took place on july 18th 1962 after midnight. It happened before numerous witnesses, it could be even filmed and should have been used to improve credibility about the whole group of events that occurred in Garabandal. Personalities, whose testimony would have been relevant afterwards, played hooky and, as usual, it was the humble who presented themselves happily to the great feast.

It consisted of the instant materialization of a Sacred Host in Conchita4s mouth, with witnesses a few inches away from her face who did not even have time to bat an eyelash. Their testimony is full of amazement, astonishment, and faith. Two miracles are reported to have taken place: one in Conchita4s mouth, and another in the heart of all people who were present.

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