“Queen of Ukraine”
SEREDNE, UKRAINE (1954)
On the vigil of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, December 21, 1954, a young girl, Anna, saw the Virgin Mary in a small church as she prayed after Mass. Mary was so beautiful that Anna cried with joy. Mary wore a glorious dress “all of white like shining lights” and a blue sash. On her head was a golden crown with twelve stars that twinkled with dazzling light. Mary said to her,
“My daughter, you see that I hold so many graces for my children which I am unable to give them because they do not ask for them. Our Father in Heaven respects the freedom of His beloved sons and daughters. Only if you turn to me and ask, am I permitted to bless you with the graces my Son has given to me for each of you.”
She shared this incident and message with many interested people outside the church. Then Anna saw Mary again, gazing at the valley below. Just then, a shrieking wind whipped through the grotto where they were gathered, extinguishing the candles and covering the people there with dust. Anna saw Mary extend her hands over the little group and consoled them with these words,
“I greatly desire to help poor sinners. A catastrophe is imminent – just as in the time of Noah. Many will die – not from flood but by fire, because certain of God’s children have so seriously disobeyed Him. Their offense has consequences that will harm many innocent people. Never in its history has humanity fallen so low. This is the age of the kingdom of Satan.”
At that very moment a sudden darkness descended upon the hill, though the valley below was bathed in sunshine. Anna saw the Virgin Mary weeping and saying,
“From this mountain I see the whole world and all its sinners. How God loves you, dear little children. How He longs to help you in your misery. From this spring of water which flows here, I will give abundance to anyone who comes in a spirit of faith with a repentant heart. Accept this gift and live as children of God, my dear little children.”
That evening, the villagers saw the mountain ablaze in an orange flame. Some said they heard the voices of angels singing throughout the night. From then on, pilgrims began to assemble on the hill to pray, to sing, and to drink or carry away the water from the brook. The signs in the sky made believers out of most of the people.
Anna saw the Virgin Mary on fifteen further occasions, teaching her to pray with her heart and other important things. Many of these apparitions were accompanied by phenomena such as a spinning sun, shooting stars, powerful winds, and unusual cloud formations.
Shortly thereafter, on May 15, 1955, St. Michael the Archangel appeared to the young girl in the grotto. Anna described him as “shining like the sun with a flaming sword which he brandished three times in a swooping gesture, leaving a trail of fire blazing through the heavens to eternity.”
As Anna gazed at the flaming heavens, the Blessed Mother appeared in the center of immense rays of brilliant light. As the pulsating rays spun and danced, Anna saw Mary attired in her traditional robes and tiara as Queen of Ukraine. She stood on a black serpent – rendering it powerless with the point of her shoe if it tried to move. Mary spoke to her,
“None of you cooperate with me or are willing to make reparations for the sins and insults to my Son Jesus. Many who come here to this grotto do so out of curiosity. Their disbelief truly wounds my heart. Rome will be ruined and the Holy Father killed, but Rome will rise again and be renewed through my presence here on this mountain of Seredne. From this place, true faith will again spread throughout the world. There will be one church and one Pontiff, and there will be peace on earth, and mankind will marvel at my merciful heart.”
The KGB and official atheist media scorned the beliefs of the people of Seredne, limiting its impact to mostly the local families and some relatives abroad.