A chronicle of the reported apparitions, 1990–1995

Litmanova is a small, almost entirely Greek Catholic village in north
central Slovakia, inhabited by Rusyns who speak both Rusyn and Slovak. In
August 1990, two teenage girls, Ivetka Korčáková and Katka Ceseľková,
reported the first of what became a monthly apparition of the Virgin
Mary, who identified herself to them as "Untainted Purity," in a hut atop
nearby Zvir mountain. This chronicle — compiled from the girls' own
testimony as recorded and published at the time — sets down the reported
events from the first apparitions of 1990 through the announcement, on
the first Sunday of August 1995, that it would be the Virgin's last
appearance.

The text is presented here exactly as the source published it: a
chronicle of contested, unofficial visionary testimony, not a claim of
Church-approved fact. At the time of writing, the Diocese of Prešov's
Greek Catholic bishop, Ján Hirka, is quoted urging exactly this caution —
that the Church tests such reports carefully before either accepting or
rejecting them. The source itself states that it intended to keep adding
later apparitions "on an ongoing basis"; what follows is the full record
as the site had published it, ending with the November 26, 1990 entry and
the announcement of the final 1995 apparition noted in the opening
paragraph above. No later installment of the chronology was ever
published on the source page.

Final Apparition in Litmanova?

Every first Sunday of the month from the first apparition of the Virgin
Mary five years ago (August 1990), the girls to whom the Virgin Mary
appeared have given her message to the faithful. At the time of the most
recent apparition (Sunday, August 6, 1995), the Mother of God announced
that this was her last appearance.

Below is the chronology of the apparitions.

It has been over two years now that the Blessed Mother has allegedly
appeared to two young girls, Ivetka and Katka, in a small town in north
central Slovakia: Litmanova. This village, inhabited by only a few hundred
families, is almost entirely Greek Catholic. In the United States, these
Greek Catholic faithful are called Byzantine Catholics and are divided
ecclesiastically according to national groups: Carpatho-Rusyn, Ukrainian,
Melkite, Russian, Hungarian, Romanian, etc. The Byzantine Catholics are in
full communion with the Pope in Rome and the Catholic Church.

The two teenaged girls allegedly receive visits and messages from the
Blessed Mother on every first Sunday of the month, which falls after the
first Friday. The Blessed Mother allegedly appeared to them for the very
first time inside a tiny hut at the top of Zvir mountain, a peak on the
outskirts of Litmanova. The Greek Catholics who live here are of
Carpatho-Rusyn nationality and speak a language called Rusyn. They also
speak and understand Slovak.

During these apparitions the Virgin Mary encourages the youths to attend
church services. She asks them to offer sacrifices combined with prayers
in reparation for their sins, the sins of Slovakia, and the sins of the
world. When the girls asked how she called herself, she replied: "I am
Untainted Purity."

The apparitions allegedly began in August 1990 and still continue to this
day. The Sunday of the apparition begins with a procession led by the two
teens from in front of the village church up to the mountainside, chanting
hymns and reciting the rosary. Once they are inside the little hut on the
summit, they begin saying Our Fathers, Hail Marys, and the Golden Our
Father. Once again they recite the Holy Rosary. It is typically during the
recitation of the Rosary that the Virgin Mary appears and joins the young
ladies in prayer. She then speaks with them at the conclusion of the
prayers. Then, after she leaves them, the Divine Liturgy is celebrated by
the parish priest. After the Liturgy, the girls announce the message of
the Blessed Mother over the microphone to all those gathered.

Afterward the pilgrims are free to go over to the source of water which
the Blessed Mother has blessed, and draw water to carry home for spiritual
healing.

The Diocese of Prešov is investigating the validity of this apparition. We
await and submit to the authority of the Catholic Church.

Here follows the history of this apparition in the simple words of these
two young girls.

The Messages of the Blessed Mother

"I am Untainted Purity, help me to preserve a pure heart!"

On September 8, 1991, the microphone fell silent through which
Litmanova's visionaries, Katka Cesel'ková and Ivetka Korčáková, had
announced to the pilgrims their encounters with the Blessed Mother and her
spiritual messages. The Bishop's Commission, founded with the purpose of
examining the messages of the Mother of God interpreted by the girls,
interfered with the publication of these messages. Today, after ending
this restriction, we publish the messages of all apparitions which
occurred between September 1991 and April 1992. We believe that the
Blessed Mother's call for spiritual renewal will be for the reader a
desirable and effectual motivation.

On the question of the authenticity of the apparitions, the Greek
Catholic Ordinary in Prešov, Bishop Ján Hirka, wrote (abridged):

"Recently we have received many petitions asking our opinion about the
events in Litmanova, where it is said that the Blessed Mother
appears... Jesus Christ and the Blessed Mother sometimes use individuals
to communicate in extraordinary form — appearing to people — to call
attention to some sacred truth or duties which have been neglected, or in
order to avert punishments. This is in our great God's plan, which we
should with gratitude and willingness receive. But it is also true that
through such communications there can arise errors, and from these arise
self-delusion and fraud, and other traps of evil spirits. Therefore the
Church is very attentive in matters of apparitions, in order not to make
such mistakes of self-delusion or fraud, and in order not to mistake such
uncertain apparitions as true apparitions of God. But through all this,
everyone must proceed according to their best conscience. If the
apparitions are true, the Savior Himself or the Blessed Mother will take
care of the accuracy of their apparitions, and then they will not be
denied forever. I want to stress that at first we must exert a critical
attitude, which will enable the truth to reveal itself more clearly
later, if this is a genuine supernatural apparition. Speaking about the
doubting of St. Thomas, St. Augustine said that he was more a proof of
faith than any of the other apostles, and rightfully so, for the Savior
Himself acceded to St. Thomas's doubt, who can therefore strengthen the
faith of weaker people."

— Bishop Ján Hirka

I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth,
of all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, Son of
God, the only begotten, born of the Father before all ages. Light of
light, true God of true God, begotten, not made, of one substance with the
Father, through Whom all things were made. Who for us men, and for our
salvation, came down from heaven, and was incarnate from the Holy Spirit
and Mary the Virgin, and became man. He was also crucified for us under
Pontius Pilate, and suffered, and was buried. And He rose again on the
third day, according to the Scriptures. And He ascended into heaven, and
sits at the right hand of the Father. And He will come again with glory,
to judge the living and the dead, and of His Kingdom there will be no end.
And in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and giver of life, Who together with the
Father and the Son is worshipped and glorified, Who spoke through the
prophets. In one holy, catholic, and apostolic Church, I profess one
Baptism for the remission of sins. I expect the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come. Amen.

August 5, 1991

We went up to the hillside — Katka Cesel'ková, Ivetka Korčáková, and
Mikuláš Cesel'ka. It was morning, about seven o'clock. On the hill we
played games all day long, we made a fire and we roasted some bacon and
sang. The Liturgy was celebrated in the church at 5:00 p.m., but we did
not want to go home to attend, so we stayed up on the hill a little
longer. At about 6:00 p.m., we heard a crackling sound in the forest near
where we had made the fire. The sound was at first soft, then it
intensified. We went inside our hut — Ivetka and Mitko lay down on their
beds because they were tired. I (Katka) heard a noise as if someone was
walking around the hut. I shouted, "Ivetka, shut the door, I'm afraid!" We
closed the door and then we heard a noise as if someone was rattling
something made of tin. The noises became louder and we became so afraid
that it took our breath away. After a while we heard yet a stronger
knocking, as if someone threw a lot of wood down from the high rocky hill.
We were terrified! At this time, Mitko told us we should pray, because we
were afraid, as the priest had told him once during a religious class. We
prayed the Our Father three times, Hail Mary, and then the Golden Our
Father three times (these prayers we knew, and Mitko was praying some
other prayers). Suddenly, I (Ivetka) had the feeling to pray "Mary, our
Mother, protect us under your mantle." I prayed it three times (this
prayer I had never said before), and then prayed "Guardian Angel." We
started to promise that Katka would begin going to religious class, that
she would go to church, and that she would go to holy confession. We were
sorry for our sins, and at this moment there was a glow, but we did not
pay attention to it because we thought it was from the sun. We did not say
anything, because we thought it was something from our imagination, or out
of fear. We made ourselves a pledge that during this week we would go to
church every day! At this moment our fear left. We were sitting on the bed
and suddenly a glow appeared in the middle of the room and we saw the
Blessed Mother. We tried to see whether this was really her! She sat on
the bench and she was listening to us. We were staring at the bench and
Katka said, "I see the Blessed Mother." "I see her too," said Ivetka. At
this moment, we all ran out of the room. We left the place in a hurry, we
did not even lock the door, we only ran home. The Blessed Mother followed
us on the way; she stayed about two steps behind us. When we turned
around, we saw her behind us. She accompanied us to the roadside cross.
There she knelt down and prayed. Then she went behind us and started to
gradually disappear. On the way home we were still afraid. I turned to
look and I saw the Blessed Mother in front of my house for the last time.
Ivetka saw the Blessed Mother in front of her uncle's house. She did not
speak to us at the time. She was dressed in a white dress, she had on a
blue cloak, a blue transparent veil, and on her head she wore a crown, and
in her hand she held a rosary.

We returned home frightened. I went to my room and was quiet. Ivetka went
home and told her mother about everything. Her mother did not believe her,
and so they went to Katka's house to ask her whether it was true. We both
started to cry because they did not believe us. Ivetka's mother believed a
little bit. When Katka's mother went to work the next day, she prayed,
"Blessed Mother, give me some visible sign that the girls are not lying."
That very evening she had a dream: "I saw the Blessed Mother with a green
garland. I asked her why she had a green garland. She replied, 'Because I
am a Virgin and I have a pure heart.' Next I asked her whether it was true
what the girls had said. The Blessed Mother replied, 'Yes, do not doubt
anything, but believe it all.'"

At the end of August, Ivetka, Katka, Mitko, and Ivetka's mother and father
went up to the hill again. When they got to the hut, only Ivetka, Katka,
and Mitko went into the room. "We asked our parents to leave us alone. We
prayed Our Father and Hail Mary three times, Golden Our Father three
times, and after that 'O Mary, our Mother, protect us under your mantle'
three times. We sat on the bed and in a moment we saw a mist, and in it we
began to distinguish the outline of the Blessed Mother, but she was hardly
visible. She did not speak to us and did not leave any message. She
disappeared into the fog and we ran out to tell our parents what we had
seen, that it was really the Blessed Mother! Mitko did not see the Blessed
Mother — the two of us only saw her, Katka and Ivetka."

September 30, 1990

Only Ivetka and a few women were present on the field. "I saw the Blessed
Mother and asked her, 'Blessed Mother, forgive me all my sins,' even
though I had gone to confession only two days ago. The Blessed Mother
asked me what I would like. I asked her for the health of my mother — her
arms and back hurt her. I wished this because next month would be my
birthday. The Blessed Mother told me, 'Do not be afraid, your mother will
soon be cured because of your tears.' At that moment, I began to cry. I
felt sorry because the Blessed Mother was crying also, and because Katka
did not come." (Katka did not keep her promise to go to church and receive
confession; she did not fulfill what she had promised the first time.)
Ivetka was kneeling very stiffly and was staring at the location of the
apparition of the Blessed Mother. At this moment, Ivetka's mother opened
the door and Ivetka jumped up and caught her mother around the neck, and
reproached her mother — why did she come and open the door right at that
moment, as she begged the Blessed Mother to stay longer with her!

October 1, 1990

Today is the holy day "Protection of the Mother of God." We were both on
the field with about 20 men from the village. "I (Ivetka) saw the Blessed
Mother clearly, but Katka saw her in a fog because she had sins on her
soul. The Blessed Mother told her to go to confession today in order to be
an example to the people. I asked the Blessed Mother to intercede for
Sonka S., who was ill. The Blessed Mother told me that every illness is a
result of sin. Sonka's parents were very materialistic and did not behave
as Christians should in many affairs. Only fervent prayers to the Blessed
Mother would help cure this child."

October 2, 1990

The two of us girls were on the field with about twenty other girls. We
started to pray Our Father and Hail Mary three times and then the Golden
Our Father. We saw the Blessed Mother — she was very happy. She told us
that all during the month of October we would not see her, but she would
pray for the conversion of sinners, and that she was always with us. I
asked her about a deaf and dumb boy, and the Blessed Mother told me that
his father beat his mother, and it was as if he had beaten his spiritual
Mother. We knew that in the church they were praying the rosary, and so we
wanted to return home. But the Blessed Mother asked us to stay with her,
and then we started to pray the rosary together.

After finishing the rosary, we went home but were afraid of passing
through the woods. Suddenly, Ivetka shouted that she saw the Blessed
Mother near the woods. We prepared for prayer by saying "Mary, our Mother,
protect us under your mantle," and after the ninth time, the Blessed
Mother opened her mantle and she guarded us the whole way home. During the
way, we sang and prayed the Our Father. The Blessed Mother accompanied us
all the way to the roadside cross.

November 1, 1990

There were about 40 people present and we entered the hut. We prayed in
the same way as the first time. Out of the fog, the outline of the Blessed
Mother began to appear, and gradually the entire shape of the Blessed
Mother. She was dressed humbly and she was barefoot. I was wondering why
the Blessed Mother was so sad, said Ivetka. The Blessed Mother told me: "I
am very sad because Katka did not dedicate to me the entire month of
October. She did not pray the rosary every evening in order to repent for
her sins." The Blessed Mother asked us to come to the field frequently. I
was afraid of how I would go to the field when winter would come and the
snow began to fall. The Blessed Mother told me not to be afraid, because
she never caused injury, only helped. Then I started to cry, and the
people in the room with me also cried, because Katka was not sufficiently
prepared as of yet — she had insufficiently atoned for her sins. The
Blessed Mother wanted to give us a message which we should spread.

November 4, 1990 (Sunday)

We went up to the field, where we together prayed the rosary. The Blessed
Mother appeared out of the mist, from which she began to make her outline.
We asked the Blessed Mother whether there should be a Divine Liturgy
offered here. The Blessed Mother told us that the Divine Liturgy should be
offered in honor of her Immaculate Heart. There were many people present
and we did not feel well. We went to the spring, we washed ourselves, and
returned. We knelt down again. The Blessed Mother told us that we saw her
faintly because our hearts were stained with sin. She told us to pray the
rosary three times. Then she told us that she had blessed the water from
the spring. She wanted all people to take the water from the spring. The
Blessed Mother is all pure. She was shining brightly and she told us to
turn our faces towards the people. When we did, we saw that all the people
had dirty faces, and then the Blessed Mother disappeared.

November 11, 1990 (Sunday)

There were a lot of people. We prayed two decades of the rosary and then
the Divine Liturgy started. We had an appearance: the Blessed Mother began
to form herself out of the mist — first an outline, then totally. She told
us that at the delivering of the message, only two of us and the priests
should stay in the room. During the Divine Liturgy, we did not see her —
only after we had finished. When the people began to pray, they continued
with the holy rosary. We did not hear them, because the Blessed Mother
appeared again and told us that she could not look at the sins of
Slovakia, that her children had a lot of everything but they did not
worship her Son and her. Her Son would send a disaster to Slovakia, but if
people atoned for themselves and started to pray fervently, the disaster
would be postponed. The Blessed Mother was sad and she told us to spread
this message all over Slovakia, in order for all of Slovakia to come and
pray here.

November 19, 1990 (Sunday)

We went to the field and there were a lot of people. On the way up, we
prayed and sang. Then the people began to sing this hymn: "We have made a
wreath for you, Mary..." We looked to the side and we saw the Blessed
Mother. She had roses around her feet. We climbed higher, and then the
people sang "Jesus and Mary are coming with us." We looked to the right
and we met the Blessed Mother with Jesus in her arms. She was barefoot;
Jesus was wrapped in a white cloth. Then we all sang together. When we
finished the rosary, we saw the Blessed Mother walking with a rosary. Then
we turned around, but we did not see her anymore. When we arrived at the
place of the apparitions, we knelt down and prayed as always. Then the
Blessed Mother appeared with Jesus in her arms. Jesus was weeping. She
gave us a message. She said that there are very few people who sacrifice,
that Jesus made Himself a sacrifice for all nations. She gave us a
proposal: "Why don't men make sacrifices as Jesus did so many years ago?"
She told us that people have many material things, they have everything
they want, and they would even kill each other for it — they only want to
get more possessions. Jesus Himself taught us that we should love one
another, that we should forgive one another. The Blessed Mother said,
"Even if the water in the spring might have some dirt, if anything is
immersed in the water, the water is still good." The Blessed Mother told
us to spread the message all over Slovakia. Then she asked us to tell the
people not to lie but to tell the truth — and she asked why there were not
more people coming to pray with us.

One woman came to us and brought us a sheet of paper on which was written
that her son had abandoned the faith, and how could she return him to
believing in God again. The Blessed Mother replied: "Her son became
distracted from the faith because he has gone to Prague to pursue his
studies. He fell in with a bad group, and then he turned bad because he
hid the fact that he was a Christian from his friends. He did not want to
mention it to anyone. He was ashamed to say that he was a Christian." The
Blessed Mother said that his mother should pray for him. She should fast,
and then the Blessed Mother would take care of everything.

One woman asked this request of the Blessed Mother: whether she should
make sacrifices for her husband who had died, what she should do for his
salvation, and how he was doing in the afterlife — whether some prayers,
liturgies, or sacrifices were necessary. The Blessed Mother said that the
wife of the dead man should continue praying and that she should give
Divine Liturgies. Her husband was doing well there, and she should keep up
as strong a faith as she now has.

November 21, 1990

The Blessed Mother appeared dressed all in white. She wore a beautiful
white veil, and in her hands a white rosary. She gave a second warning to
us. There were very few people present. Jesus sacrificed Himself for all
nations. "My children have so much material things that they even kill
one another. My Son Himself preached and taught that men should love one
another and forgive one another. But it is not realized here!" We asked
her about Danka, who was ill. The Blessed Mother told us to bring the
child up to the field, to the place of apparitions, not listening to what
people say — oh, what a little child you bring here. "It is necessary to
wash the child in the holy spring. Take two to five liters of this water
and bathe the child in it. Pray together the holy rosary and make
sacrifices for the child."

November 25, 1990

The Blessed Mother appeared out of the mist, from which we started to see
the outline. Later, we saw her clearly, in a blue dress with a blue
rosary. The crucifix on the rosary had a golden border and was entirely
gold. The Blessed Mother appeared kind and gave us a message for the
Father (priest): "Please celebrate the Divine Liturgy here on Sunday.
Invite believers from all the parishes. They can come without fear. The
Holy Spirit will help them. The Holy Liturgy should be celebrated in honor
of My Son and Me." The Blessed Mother then said thank you.

I asked her about Helenka — her leg hurts her. The Blessed Mother gave the
message that God allowed a test for her, whether she would turn away from
God. If she would pray, then she would be cured. I asked her about a woman
who drank. The Blessed Mother said: "It was necessary to bring her to the
place of apparitions. She must be sober. Let her come into the hut and
leave her alone to pray various prayers. All of them will be accepted. Let
her wash in the holy spring and she should do it often." After all this,
the Blessed Mother gave us the message that her power is strongest on the
field, in the hut, and near the spring, where she can work her miracles.

November 26, 1990

Ivetka was in school, and during a 20-minute break, she saw a very clear
brightness, and in the center was a heart. She felt a strange feeling
later, as if she were dizzy. Ivetka said: "I returned to the classroom and
I took out my rosary and I put it on the table. All of the children
assembled around me and asked me to tell them of the apparitions. I sat
down and began to speak. It was not my voice, but rather it seemed to me
that someone else was speaking instead of me. Everything rhymed as in a
poem. All the children were enthusiastic about this talk; even
nonbelievers listened to me. They asked me to pray for them, to obtain
icons and rosaries, and also to pray for them and for their parents who
are disbelievers too. I told the children that the holy rosary has a great
power and that no bad spirit would ever overcome it."

We will be adding the remainder of the apparitions on an ongoing basis —
check back often!

"Mary, our Mother, hide us beneath your veil."

Colophon

Chronicle of the reported Marian apparitions at Litmanova, Slovakia
(1990–1995), captured 2026-08-05 from
http://www.carpatho-rusyn.org/spirit/limanova.htm (Carpatho-Rusyn
Spirituality section, Carpatho-Rusyn Knowledge Base). No author or
publisher byline accompanies the page beyond the site itself; no
restrictive copyright notice was found. As the source page states in its
own closing line, the chronology was intended to be extended "on an
ongoing basis," but no later installment was ever published at this URL —
the record above, ending with the November 26, 1990 entry, is the complete
text as captured. Girls' given names and the visionaries' surnames are
rendered with standard Slovak diacritics (Korčáková, Cesel'ková) where the
source's plain-ASCII spelling was unambiguous; Bishop Ján Hirka's quoted
letter is presented as excerpted ("abridged") in the source. This is
presented as a historical record of contested, Church-unapproved private
testimony, not as a claim about its supernatural authenticity, which the
source itself explicitly leaves to the Diocese of Prešov's own
investigation.

Prepared for the Good Work Library by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, with
AI-assisted research and preservation.

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