The Vatican Academy will study “mystical phenomena” around the world, including “weeping” images of Mary, stigmata and ghost sightings as part of plans to set up a new observatory

A Vatican academy will study “mystical phenomena” around the world, including “weeping” statues of the Virgin Mary, stigmata and ghost sightings as part of plans for a new dedicated observatory.

The Pontifical Mariana International Academy (PAMI), which calls itself the scientific body of the Holy See, hopes to bring to light “about a hundred ongoing phenomena” in Italy alone.

The specialized observatory, which is still awaiting the authenticity of the church, will “evaluate and study apparitions and mystical phenomena around the world”, reports the Vatican News.

It will deal with ghost sightings, inner speeches and stigmata – which believers see as physical marks, scars or pain that correspond to Jesus Christ’s crucifixion wounds.

Father Gian Matteo Roggio, the Mariologist who inaugurated the Observatory’s new Scientific Committee, told local Italian media: “In Italy there are about a hundred ongoing phenomena that the Church follows closely.

A Vatican academy will study “mystical phenomena” around the world, including “weeping” statues of the Virgin Mary, as part of plans for a new dedicated observatory. Pictured: The ‘weeping statue’ of the Virgin Mary ‘cries bloody tears’ for the 38th time in 2018 in Argentina (left), while another Madonna is believed to have done the same in recent years in Italy (right).

The Pontifical Mariana International Academy (PAMI), which calls itself the scientific body of the Holy See, hopes to bring to light “about a hundred ongoing phenomena” in Italy alone. In the photo: St. Peter’s Square, Vatican City

“Many of them are local and of limited scope, not all of them get the attention of the media and the general public.”

The new monitoring committee, which will begin its first session on Saturday, has been monitoring a curious case regarding a weeping statue of the Virgin Mary in Trevignano, near Rome.

It was about an Italian woman who was investigated for fraud after she claimed her image of the Virgin Mary could shed tears of blood and multiply gnocchi and pizza.

Thousands flocked to see Gisella Cardia’s predictions after her statue of Our Lady of Trevignano Romano began “weeping” blood.

Followers thought she brought messages from Mary, with some saying she even predicted the Covid pandemic.

However, church researchers recently discovered that the blood her statue was weeping was not holy and was in fact from a pig, local media reported.

Officials believe she has now fled after scaring off her followers with tens of thousands of dollars worth of donations.

This is not the first time church officials have decided to investigate “weeping” statues of the Virgin Mary.

PAMI, which begins its first session on Saturday, has been monitoring a curious case involving a weeping statue of the Virgin Mary (pictured) in Trevignano, near Rome.

Gisella Cardia (pictured), 53, was exposed as a fraud after church investigators discovered the blood her statue was weeping was not holy and was in fact from a pig

Followers believed that Cardia brought news from Mary, and some said that she even predicted the Covid pandemic

In 2018, a church in New Mexico found a Madonna licking olive oil, causing excitement that a supernatural force was behind it.

Bishop Oscar Cantú of Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church in Hobbs, USA, said the church will decide whether the sign is good or bad.

Later that year, another Virgin Mary, this time in Argentina, was seen “weeping” tears of blood for the alleged 38th time.

The image of the Virgin of the Mystic Rose has been linked to several “miracles,” such as a woman who had a 3-inch tumor that allegedly disappeared after visiting him.

A year earlier, Catholic miracle researchers in Acapulco, southwest Mexico, investigated a Virgin Mary who “began to cry” in front of the owners.

The saint was a Mexican version of the Virgin Mary, nicknamed la Morenita, or the brunette. Devout followers were stunned when images and videos emerged of tears apparently streaming down their cheeks.

In other incidents believed to be supernatural, an archdiocese in Connecticut, USA, stunned supporters last month when it claimed a parishioner had seen the number of wafers he was handing out for the “enlargement” of communion.

PAMI’s new observatory will also introduce local scientific committees to create a larger network for more investigations.

This image of the Virgin Mary is said to have “wept blood” for the alleged 38th time in a “miracle” in Argentina.

In 2018, a church in New Mexico found a Madonna licking olive oil, sparking excitement that a supernatural force was behind it

Catholic miracle researchers investigated a Virgin Mary in Acapulco, southwest Mexico. who begins to “shed tears” in front of his owners.

Father Stefano Cecchin, member of the committee, explained: “The purpose of the observatory [is] activate national and international commissions to evaluate and study apparitions and mystical phenomena reported in different parts of the world.

He added: ‘[It will] Promotion of updating and training activities on these types of events and their multiple spiritual and cultural meanings, promotion of large-scale dissemination and consultation activities, especially in the service of local Churches and Bishops, but also transdisciplinary research activities in collaboration with academic institutions, both lay and clergy , and the publication of the results of the investigations carried out.’

Father Roggio, a member of the committee, has spoken about mystical phenomena before, most notably in 2021 when he revealed that demand for exorcisms had increased during the pandemic.

The Catholic priest told The Telegraph at the time: “We have seen an increase in requests for operations as the pandemic has made people more susceptible to the idea that Satan or some evil entity has taken over their lives.

“People fell into poverty; They suffered from anxiety and depression. They feel that their lives are no longer in their own hands, but in the hands of an evil power. It’s a big crisis.’

He was speaking at a six-day international conference that brought more than 100 priests and bishops from around the world to Rome to attend the world’s only accredited course on exorcism.