The first sentence of the nearly 20 page Vatican document released today gets our hope going:
The time has come to conclude a long and complex history that has surrounded the spiritual phenomena of Medjugorje. It is a history in which bishops, theologians, commissions, and analysts have expressed a series of divergent opinions.
However, as Bishop Robert Barron points out, the document ends with the central question unanswered:
The Vatican concluded that its evaluation of "the abundant and widespread fruits" of spirituality seen at Medjugorje "does not imply that the alleged supernatural events are declared authentic".
In other words, we are in the exact same position today as we were yesterday with devotions approved and the question of authenticity unresolved.
The report basically asserts that the overwhelming majority of the messages are essentially harmless and there is mostly good fruit coming from the place. Yes, there is some bad stuff and nonsense (like our Lady's birthday being August 5th) but these specific details are nothing to get worked up about.
Essentially, the Vatican determined that, as long as these Medjugorje folks are not hurting anyone, we should let them be. This is the Gamaliel approach. If it is not of God, it will wither away.
There is nothing of Medjugorje that would lead a rational person to believe it is of God.
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