October 28, 2025 • 35 mins
We trace the apparitions of Our Lady of Akita through the life of Sister Agnes Sasagawa and the Handmaids of the Eucharist, set against postwar Japan. We unpack the three messages, the Eucharistic focus, the weeping statue, healings, and the link to Fatima, then invite concrete steps of prayer and penance.
• Postwar Japan context and Catholic minority
• Sister Agnes’s conversion, deafness and vocation
• Founding and charism of the Handmaids of the Eucharist
• First apparition and call to reparation
• Three messages of Akita and their urgency
• Parallels with Fatima and shared themes
• Centrality of the Eucharist and reverence
• Reported healings and investigated cures
• The weeping statue’s signs and symbolism
• Stigmata as participation in Christ’s Passion
• Practical response through rosary, confession and adoration
• Our ministry’s resources, pilgrimages and media
Take the next step on your pilgrimage of faith with these transformative opportunities... Explore our resources... Join a pilgrimage... Shop devotional treasures... Let’s journey together, visit Journeys of Faith today, and let the messages of Akita ignite your faith anew. Be sure to click the link in the description for special news items
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SPEAKER_00 (00:00):
Hello family, welcome to Journeys of Faith
Super Saints Podcast.
Brother Joseph Fryodenhovenhere.
Be sure to look at thedescription for special
information of interest to you,and also there is more to this
article.
Sister Agnes and the Messages ofAkita Lessons for Today's
Church.
(00:20):
In the quiet, unassuming town ofAkita, Japan, a profound
spiritual drama unfolded in the1970s, one that continues to
echo through the corridors ofCatholic faith with a resonance
that feels almost otherworldly.
Here, in a humble convent,Sister Agnes Sasagawa, a deaf
(00:41):
nun of the handmaids of theEucharist, became the unlikely
recipient of messages from OurLady of Akita, urgent, piercing
warnings and calls to repentancethat seem tailor-made for the
struggles of today's church.
At Journeys of Faith, we aredrawn to these moments where the
divine intersects with thehuman, where the Virgin Mary is
(01:01):
the ultimate mother and guide,offers her children a roadmap
through turbulent times.
The story of Akita is not just ahistorical footnote, it is a
living testament to the power ofMarian devotion and the urgency
of heeding heaven's voice.
As a ministry rooted inEucharistic reverence and
unwavering loyalty to theCatholic magisterium, we see in
(01:23):
Sister Agnes's experiences amirror to our own mission, to
illuminate the mysteries offaith for a world in desperate
need of hope, from the weepingstatue of Our Lady to the stark
prophecies of chastism andrenewal, the events of Akita are
a call to prayer, penance, andfidelity, themes that resonate
deeply with our work at journeysof faith to foster spiritual
(01:47):
growth through pilgrimages,retreats, and sacred media.
What unfolded in that remoteJapanese convent was no mere
curiosity.
It was a supernaturalintervention approved by the
local bishop and recognized forits authenticity, carrying
messages that pierce the heartof modern crises, division,
(02:07):
moral decay, and a drifting awayfrom the sacraments.
As we delve into the life ofSister Agnes and the revelations
of Our Lady of Akita, let usapproach with awe and a
readiness to learn.
These are not just stores, theyare lessons etched in tears and
grace, urging us to return tothe Eucharist, to cling to
(02:27):
Mary's intercession, and tostand firm in the teachings of
the Church.
Join us on this journey ofreflection as we uncover what
Akita means for Catholics todayand how it can ignite a renewed
fire of devotion in our souls.
(02:51):
In the shadow of World War II,Japan emerged as a nation
grappling with profound loss andtransformation.
The atomic bombings of Hiroshimaand Nagasaki in 1945 left scars
not just on the landscape but onthe soul of the country, with
hundreds of thousands dead and acultural identity shaken to its
(03:11):
core.
Amid this devastation, theCatholic Church in Japan, a tiny
minority in a predominantlyShinto and Buddhist society,
faced its own reckoning.
Catholics made up less than 1%of the population, roughly
100,000 souls in a nation ofmillions, yet their presence
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carried a weight of historytracing back to the missionary
efforts of St.
Francis Xavier in the 16thcentury.
Post-war Japan, however, was acrucible of change, and the
church found itself navigating alandscape of both suspicion and
opportunity.
The American occupation 1945 to1952 brought a wave of Western
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influence, including a newconstitution guaranteeing
religious freedom.
For Japanese Catholics, longmarginalized since the brutal
persecutions of the Edo period,this was a lifeline.
Churches that had been shutteredor forced underground could
reopen, and missionaries,particularly from the United
States, poured in to rebuild.
Yet the trauma of war lingered.
(04:14):
Nagasaki, a historic center ofJapanese Catholicism, had been
ground zero for the secondatomic bomb, obliterating the
Urokami Cathedral and killingthousands of the faithful in an
instant.
Survivors whispered of divinejudgment or martyrdom, their
faith tested in waysunimaginable.
(04:35):
The church's response was one ofquiet resilience, rebuilding not
just structures but communities,offering solace to a people
hungry for meaning in theaftermath of defeat.
By the 1970s, when the messagesof Our Lady of Akita would
emerge, Japanese Catholicism hadgrown slightly but remained a
cultural outlier.
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The faithful were often viewedwith curiosity or distrust,
their beliefs seen as foreign ina society still wrestling with
its own spiritual identity.
Converts were few, often drawnby personal encounters with
missionaries or the witness ofCatholic charity in the postwar
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recovery.
Yet, beneath this surface ofstruggle there was a deepening
hunger for the transcendent.
The rapid modernization andeconomic boom of the nineteen
sixties and nineteen seventiesleft many Japanese feelings
spiritually adrift, and forsome, the ancient rituals and
promises of Catholicism offeredan anchor.
(05:38):
It was in this complex, wounded,yet searching context that the
apparitions at Akita wouldunfold, speaking to a small but
fervent community and eventuallyto the universal church with a
message of urgency and hope.
Join us on a journey of faithwith Our Lady of Akita.
At Journeys of Faith, we're notjust about telling stories of
(06:00):
miracles and messages like thoseof Sister Agnes and Our Lady of
Akita, we're about living them.
Inspired by the awe andreverence of these divine
encounters, we invite you todeepen your spiritual walk with
us.
Our mission, rooted in the heartof Catholic tradition and
Eucharistic devotion, is toguide you closer to Christ
through the intercession of Maryand the wisdom of the saints.
(06:24):
Take the next step on yourpilgrimage of faith with these
transformative opportunities.
Explore our resources, dive intoour vast collection of Catholic
media, including books like ThisIs My Body, This Is My Blood,
and Multimedia that unpack themysteries of Akita and beyond.
Join a pilgrimage, experiencethe sacred first hand with our
(06:45):
expertly curated retreats andpilgrimages, connecting you to
holy sites and stories thatinspire.
Shop devotional treasures, visitour renowned gift shop online or
in person for thousands of itemsto nurture your devotion to our
lady and the Eucharist.
Let's journey together, visitjourneys of faith today, and let
the messages of Akita igniteyour faith anew.
(07:08):
The early life and conversion ofSister Agnes Katsuko Sasagawa.
In the quiet, unassuming town ofNagasaki, Japan, a young Agnes
Katsuko Sasagawa entered theworld on March 28, 1931, into a
landscape still scarred by thehorrors of war and the atomic
devastation that would mark herhomeland just over a decade
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later.
Her early life was not one ofovert piety or predestined
sanctity, rather it was ajourney through hardship and
loss, a crucible that wouldforge a soul open to the divine
whispers of Our Lady of Akita.
Born into a Buddhist family,Agnes grew up steeped in the
cultural and spiritualtraditions of her ancestors, far
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removed from the Catholic faiththat would later define her
life, yet even in those earlyyears, there was a quiet
searching, a yearning forsomething beyond the visible,
though she could not yet nameit.
At the tender age of nineteen,Agnes faced a trial that would
test her resilience, a severeillness that left her partially
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paralyzed after a botchedappendectomy.
Bedridden and grappling with herown fragility, she encountered
the kindness of Catholic nurseswho cared for her with a
tenderness that planted thefirst seeds of curiosity about
their faith.
Their compassion was a silentsermon, speaking to her of a
love that transcended mere duty.
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It was during this period ofphysical weakness that Agnes
began to explore Christianity,drawn not by grand theological
arguments, but by the livedwitness of those who embodied
Christ's mercy.
Her conversion to Catholicism innineteen fifty six at the age of
twenty five was not a sudden,dramatic epiphany, but a gradual
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unfolding, much like the slowblooming of a cherry blossom
under the gentle warmth ofspring.
Baptized into the church, shetook the name Agnes, a nod to
the virgin martyr whose purityand courage would echo in her
own life's mission.
Yet, even as she embraced hernew faith, challenges persisted,
deafness struck her, a profoundisolation that could have
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embittered a lesser spirit.
Instead, Agnes found in hersilence a space for God to
speak, a preparation for theextraordinary role she would
play as a vessel for themessages of Our Lady of Akita.
Her call to religious life cameas naturally as breathing,
leading her to join theHandmaids of the Eucharist in
1969, a small community inAkita, Japan.
(09:44):
Here in the remote northernreaches of the country, Sister
Agnes Katsuko Sasagawa wouldstep into a chapter of her life
that none could have foreseen, achapter where the ordinary would
collide with the miraculous, anda humble nun would become a
conduit for heavenly warningsand graces meant for the entire
(10:07):
church.
The founding of the handmaids ofthe Holy Eucharist.
In the quiet, unassuming town ofAkita, Japan, a profound
spiritual legacy took root in1970 with the founding of the
handmaids of the Holy Eucharist,a small community of women
dedicated to a light to life ofprayer and Eucharistic devotion.
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This was no ordinary religiousorder.
It was a humble yet powerfulresponse to a world increasingly
distracted from the sacred.
The handmaids, under theguidance of their founder,
sought to live out a radicalcommitment to Christ in the
Eucharist, offering their livesas a silent witness to his real
presence, a mission that wouldsoon intertwine with the
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extraordinary messages of OurLady of Akita.
The origins of the handmaids aresteeped in a deep reverence for
the blessed sacrament, adevotion that shaped their daily
rhythm of prayer, adoration, andsacrifice.
They were called to be spiritualsentinels, guarding the heart of
the church through their hiddenlives of intercession.
(11:12):
In a culture where Christianitywas a minority, their quiet
fidelity stood as a beacon,drawing souls to the mystery of
God's love made manifest in theEucharist.
It was within this context ofprofound dedication that Sister
Agnes Katsuko Sasagawa, a memberof the Handmaids, would receive
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the heavenly messages that shookthe faithful worldwide.
The founding of the Handmaidswasn't just about establishing a
community, it was about plantinga seed of renewal in a world
desperate for spiritualgrounding.
Their charism, rooted inEucharistic adoration and marine
devotion, became the fertilesoil from which the messages of
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Akita would emerge, messages ofwarning, repentance, and hope.
The handmaid's commitment toprayer and sacrifice provided
the backdrop for our lady's callto conversion, a call that
echoed through Sister Agnes'svisions and continues to
resonate with the church today.
First apparition, the voice fromthe tabernacle in the quiet,
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unassuming convent of thehandmaids of the Holy Eucharist
in Akita, Japan, somethingextraordinary broke through the
ordinary on June twelfth,nineteen seventy-three.
Sister Agnes Sasagawa, a humblenun with a life already marked
by physical suffering andspiritual depth, was praying
before the Blessed Sacramentwhen a voice, clear, resonant,
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and undeniably divine, spokefrom the tabernacle.
It wasn't a whisper in her mindor a vague feeling, it was a
direct piercing call that wouldalter her life and send ripples
through the church.
The voice, as Sister Agnes laterrecounted, carried the tender
yet commanding tone of theBlessed Virgin Mary, our Lady of
Akita.
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It urged her to pray with fervorfor the reparation of sins, to
offer her sufferings for theconversion of sinners, and to
prepare for a message that wouldsoon unfold.
This wasn't just a personalencounter, it was a summons to a
mission, a reminder of theweight of sin in the world and
the urgent need for penance.
Imagine the weight of thatmoment a solitary nun kneeling
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in the dim light of a chapel,hearing the mother of God speak
from the very presence of Christin the Eucharist.
It's the kind of story thatstops you cold, that demands you
sit with the mystery of God'schoice to speak through the
lowly.
This first apparition wasn'taccompanied by visions or
dramatic signs, but itssimplicity is what makes it so
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profound.
The voice from the tabernaclerooted the message in the heart
of Catholic devotion, the realpresence of Jesus in the
Eucharist.
It was as if our lady wassaying, Start here, return to
Him.
Everything flows from thissacred mystery.
For a church often distracted bythe noise of the world, this
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moment in Akita is a starkreminder of where our gaze
should always rest.
Sister Agnes, in her obedienceand humility, became a vessel
for a message that wasn't justfor her, but for all of us, a
call to listen, to pray, and tosacrifice in a world that so
desperately needs it.
The three messages of Our Ladyof Akita explain.
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In the quiet, remote village ofAkita, Japan, Our Lady delivered
three piercing messages toSister Agnes Sasagawa between
July and October of 1973.
These messages steeped inurgency and maternal concern,
cut through the noise of ourmodern world like a blade,
demanding attention andreflection from the faithful.
They are not mere historicalcuriosities but living calls to
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action, resonating with thechallenges facing today's
church.
Let's unpack each one with theclarity and reverence they
deserve, digging into theirspiritual weight and timeless
relevance.
The first message given on julysixth, nineteen seventy three
came as a tender yet firm pleafor prayer and sacrifice.
Our Lady warned of a comingchastisement if humanity did not
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turn back to God, emphasizingthe power of the rosary as a
shield against spiritual decay.
She urged Sister Agnes to prayfor the conversion of sinners
and to offer her own sufferingsin reparation for the sins of
the world.
It's a message that hits hard,reminding us that personal
holiness isn't just a privateaffair but a communal
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responsibility.
In an era where individualismoften drowns out the call to
communal penance, this firstmessage is a stark wake-up call
to intercede for others throughprayer and sacrifice.
The second message, delivered onAugust 3rd, 1973, turned up the
heat.
Our Lady spoke with chillingprecision about division within
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the church itself, foretellingthat the work of the devil will
infiltrate even into the churchin such a way that one will see
cardinals opposing cardinals,bishops against bishops.
She lamented the loss ofreverence for the Eucharist and
the growing apathy among thefaithful.
This isn't just a prediction,it's a diagnosis of a spiritual
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malaise that we can still seefestering today.
Her words compel us to guard thesanctity of the blessed
sacrament and to stand firm infidelity to the teachings of the
magisterium, even when thecultural tides pull us in the
opposite direction.
The third message on Octoberthirteenth, nineteen seventy
three is perhaps the mosthaunting.
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Our Lady painted a grim pictureof a world unrepentant, warning
that if men do not repent andbetter themselves, the Father
will inflict a terriblepunishment on all humanity.
She spoke of fire falling fromthe sky, of widespread
suffering, and of the survivorsenvying the dead.
Yet even in this dire prophecy,her maternal heart shone
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through, she offered hopethrough the rosary and devotion
to her immaculate heart as apath to mitigation.
This message isn't meant toparalyze us with fear but to
ignite a fire of conversion.
It's a gut punch, yes, but alsoa lifeline, urging us to cling
to prayers, the anchor inturbulent times.
These three messages deliveredthrough the humble vessel of
Sister Agnes aren't just relicsof the past.
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They are a mirror held up to ourpresent struggles, division,
irreverence, and a worldteetering on the edge of
spiritual collapse.
They demand that we, as membersof the body of Christ, take
stock of our own hearts andcommit to the hard, unglamorous
work of repentance and prayer.
Our Lady of Akita's voice echoesacross the decades, as sharp and
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urgent as ever, calling us to bebeacons of light in a darkening
world.
Connection between Akita andFatima prophecies.
When you dig into the messagesof Our Lady of Akita delivered
through Sister Agnes Sasagawa inthe 1970s, you can't help but
notice the eerie parallels tothe Fatima apparitions of 1917.
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Both sets of prophecies given bythe Blessed Virgin Mary carry a
weighty urgency, a call torepentance, prayer, and
sacrifice to avert catastrophicconsequences for humanity.
As Catholics, we're not justreading history here, we're
uncovering a spiritual roadmapthat feels as relevant now as it
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was decades or centuries ago.
At Fatima, our lady warned ofwars, suffering, and the spread
of errors if her requests forprayer and consecration were
ignored.
She spoke of a bishop in whitefacing immense trials and hinted
at global turmoil.
Fast forward to Akita, and thetone is just as grave.
Mary's messages to Sister Agnesspeak of a great chastisement
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worse than the deluge with firefalling from the sky and much of
humanity facing destruction ifsin continues unabated.
She pleads for the rosary to beprayed daily and for the
faithful to offer sacrifices forsinners.
Sound familiar?
It's almost as if Fatima'swarnings were amplified in
Akita, dialed up for a worldthat hadn't fully heeded the
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earlier call.
What's striking is the sharedemphasis on the role of the
church itself in these crises.
In Fatima, our lady pointed tothe need for the consecration of
Russia to her immaculate heartas a path to peace.
In Akita, the messages take adarker turn, warning of division
within the church, withcardinals opposing cardinals,
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bishops against bishops.
This internal strife, Marylaments, will compound the
world's suffering if prayer andfidelity to God's law don't
prevail.
For those of us who hold fast tothe magisterium, these words
aren't just chilling, they're asobering reminder of our
responsibility to pray for ourshepherds and to stand firm in
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orthodoxy.
Then there's the personal costof obedience in both stories.
The Fatih Massirs, Lucia,Francisco, and Hacinta endured
skepticism, ridicule, and evenimprisonment for sharing Mary's
words.
Sister Agnes, too, faced her owntrials, including physical
suffering and the burden ofrelaying messages that many
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would rather dismiss.
Yet in both cases, the blessedmother's presence brought not
just warnings, but profoundhope.
She promised that her immaculateheart would triumph, that prayer
and sacrifice could change thecourse of history.
That's the thread tying Akita toFatima, a divine insistence that
we, the faithful, have a role toplay in God's plan.
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As we reflect on theseconnections, we're left with a
sense of awe at how our lady'svoice echoes across time and
place from a Portuguese villageto a remote Japanese convent.
The prophecies of Fatima andAkita aren't isolated incidents.
They're part of a largertapestry of Marian intervention,
urging the church to wake up, topray, to repent.
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For today's Catholics, grapplingwith cultural shifts and
internal challenges, thesemessages aren't just relics of
the past, they're a clarion callto action.
The Eucharistic heart of theAkita apparitions.
Dive into the profound spirituallayers of the Akita apparitions,
and you'll uncover a pulsingEucharistic core that resonates
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with the deepest currents ofCatholic devotion.
Between 1973 and 1981, SisterAgnes Sasagawa, a humble
Japanese nun, received messagesfrom Our Lady of Akita that
weren't just warnings or callsto prayer.
They were a piercing reminder ofthe real presence in the
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Eucharist as the lifeblood ofthe church.
This wasn't abstract theology,it was raw, urgent, and drenched
in reverence for Christ's bodyand blood, a theme that echoes
through every tear shed by thewooden statue of Mary in that
remote convent.
Picture this, a small,unassuming chapel in the
Japanese countryside far fromthe Vatican's marble halls,
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where a statue of the VirginMary weeps one hundred and one
times over nearly a decade,scientifically tested, these
tears, human tears, mind you,carry a weight beyond chemistry.
They point to a sorrow tieddirectly to the neglect of the
Eucharist, as our Lady'smessages to Sister Agnes lament
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a world growing cold to thesacrifice of the altar.
On october thirteenth, nineteenseventy three, the anniversary
of the Fatima miracle, Mary'svoice cut through with a
sobering clarity.
Humanity's indifference to sinand sacrilege wounds her son's
sacred heart most acutely in thedesecration of the blessed
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sacrament.
It's a gut punch to any Catholicwho's ever taken the host for
granted.
But this isn't just about divinegrief, it's a call to action.
Our Lady of Akita urged SisterAgnes to foster a renewed awe
for the Eucharist, to see eachMass as a re-entering into
Calvary where Christ's offeringis not a relic of history, but a
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living reality.
The message is tied personalconversion to Eucharistic
devotion, warning that withoutthis anchor, the church risks
drifting into chaos.
Think of it as a spiritualdiagnostic.
If the Eucharist isn't at thecenter, everything else, prayer,
penance, even Marian devotion,loses its grounding.
Akita's visions paired with theweeping statue aren't mere
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spectacle.
They're a mirror held up totoday's faithful, asking us to
examine how we approach thealtar.
And let's not gloss over thecultural context.
In Japan, a nation whereChristians are a tiny minority,
the Eucharistic emphasis ofAkita cuts against the grain of
secularism and religiouspluralism.
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It's a bold statement that theuniversal truth of Christ's
presence in the Eucharisttranscends borders, languages,
and histories.
Sister Agnes, often in physicalagony during these visions, bore
witness to a mystery thatdoesn't bend to modern
skepticism.
It demands a response.
The Akita apparitions at theirheart are a plea to return to
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the source and summit of ourfaith, to kneel before the
tabernacle with the sametrembling awe that Sister Agnes
felt when Mary spoke.
Miraculous healings and verifiedmedical cures.
In the quiet, unassuming villageof Akita, Japan, the messages of
Our Lady of Akita deliveredthrough Sister Agnes Sasagawa
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are not merely words etched inspiritual lore, they are backed
by tangible, awe-inspiring signsthat defy human explanation.
Among the most compellingaspects of the Akita apparitions
are the documented healings andmedical cures associated with
the sight and the intercessionof the Blessed Virgin.
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These events stand as a beaconof hope for today's church,
reminding us that the divine isnot distant but intimately
involved in our suffering andredemption.
One of the most striking casestied to Akita is the miraculous
healing of a South Korean womanin 1982 who suffered from
terminal brain cancer.
Her prognosis was grim.
Doctors gave her mere weeks tolive.
(25:28):
Yet after fervent prayer to OurLady of Akita and a pilgrimage
to the site, her conditioninexplicably reversed.
Medical scans that once showed afatal tumor revealed nothing but
healthy tissue.
Her doctors, baffled and unableto offer a scientific
explanation, could onlyacknowledge the unexplainable.
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This case, among others, wasscrutinized and later affirmed
by ecclesiastical authorities asa sign of divine intervention, a
modern echo of the healingsChrist performed in the gospels.
These verified cures are notmere anecdotes or pious
exaggerations, they have beensubjected to rigorous
investigation, often involvingmedical professionals and church
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officials who approach suchclaims with a healthy
skepticism.
The process mirrors themeticulous inquiries at Lourdes
or Fatima, where the bar fordeclaring a miracle is set
extraordinarily high.
In Akita, the healings serve asa testament to the power of
faith and the maternal care ofMary, who as our lady of Akita
weeps for humanity's sins whileoffering her intercession for
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our physical and spiritualailments.
What does this mean for us asfaithful Catholics in a world
often skeptical of thesupernatural?
It's a call to trust, to leaninto the mystery of God's grace
even when it defies logic orscience.
The healings at Akita are notjust historical curiosities,
they are living invitations todeepen our devotion, to pray
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with the same fervor as thosewho sought Mary's help, and to
remember that the Mother of Godstands ready to intercede for us
in our own moments ofdesperation.
They challenge today's church toreclaim a sense of wonder, to
preach not just with words, butwith the undeniable power of
God's works among us.
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The weeping wooden statue,significance and symbolism in
the quiet, unassuming convent ofAkita, Japan, a wooden statue of
Our Lady became the epicenter ofa divine mystery that still
reverberates through theCatholic world.
Between 1973 and 1981, thishumble carving of the Virgin
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Mary wept human tears 101 timesby the count of witnesses,
bearing a message of urgency andsorrow that cuts through the
noise of our modern age.
For those of us who seek thefingerprints of God in the
ordinary, the weeping statue ofOur Lady of Akita stands as a
haunting reminder of heaven'snearness, a call to listen when
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the world would rather scrollpast.
The statue itself, carved by alocal Buddhist artisan, depicts
Mary in a posture of sereneintercession, her hands folded
in prayer, her gaze castdownward as if bearing the
weight of humanity's struggles.
Yet it was on January 4th, 1975,when Sister Agnes Sasagawa, the
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visionary at the heart of theseevents, first noticed tears
streaming from the statue'seyes, that the ordinary became
extraordinary.
Scientific analysis laterconfirm the tears were of human
origin, define explanation, andinviting awe.
Blood and sweat also appeared onthe statue, mirroring the wounds
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of Christ and the anguish of amother witnessing her children
stray.
Symbolically, these tears are apiercing cry from the heart of
Mary, a reflection of hermaternal grief over a world
steeped in sin and indifference.
They echo the warning shedelivered through Sister Agnes,
messages of impendingchastisement if humanity does
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not repent, coupled with a pleafor prayer, penance, and
fidelity to the gospel.
The weeping statue is not merelya miracle to gawk at, it's a
signpost pointing to thespiritual malaise of our times.
In an era where faith is oftenreduced to a checkbox or a
cultural relic, the tears ofAkita challenge us to confront
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our own hardness of heart.
Are we listening to the motherwho weeps for us, or are we too
distracted by the endless grindof daily life?
The blood and sweat too carryprofound meaning, uniting Mary's
sorrow with the passion of herson.
They remind us that the path toredemption is not a passive one,
it demands sacrifice, awillingness to share in Christ's
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suffering.
For the faithful, the weepingstatue becomes a tangible link
to the To the mysteries of thecross and the Immaculate Heart,
urging us to embrace thediscomfort of conversion rather
than shy away from it.
It's a gut punch of a message.
Heaven is not indifferent to ourchoices, and neither should we
be.
As we meditate on thisextraordinary sign, we're
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invited to see beyond the woodand varnish to the reality of a
God who speaks through theunexpected, a God who chooses a
remote Japanese convent to shakeus awake.
The weeping statue of Akita isnot just a historical curiosity,
it's a living call to prayer, areminder that the tears of Mary
are shed for each of us,pleading for our return to the
(30:39):
heart of the church and themercy of her son.
Stigmata of Sister Agnes, aparticipation in Christ's
Passion.
In the quiet, hallowed halls ofa Japanese convent, Sister Agnes
Sasagawa bore a mystery thatpierced the veil between the
earthly and the divine.
(31:00):
In nineteen seventy-three, asshe knelt in prayer before a
statue of Our Lady of Akita,something extraordinary
unfolded.
Her hands began to bleed.
Not from injury, not fromaccident, but from wounds that
mirrored the crucifixion ofChrist Himself.
(31:20):
These were stigmata, the visiblemarks of his passion etched into
her flesh as a sign of profoundspiritual union.
The wounds weren't justphysical, they carried a weight
of meaning that reverberatedthrough the small community of
the handmaids of the Eucharistin Akita.
Sister Agnes, a humble andunassuming soul, didn't seek
attention or acclaim, yet hersuffering became a silent
(31:41):
sermon, a living testament tothe reality of Christ's
sacrifice.
The blood that seeped from herpalms wasn't merely hers, it was
a call to the faithful toremember the cost of redemption.
Each drop seemed to whisper, doyou see what he endured for you?
What's striking about SisterAgnes's stigmata is the context
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in which they appeared.
They coincided with messagesfrom Our Lady of Akita, urgent
pleas for repentance and prayerin a world teetering on the edge
of spiritual collapse.
The wounds were not justpersonal, they were prophetic.
They pointed to a church and ahumanity in need of healing, a
reminder that the passion ofChrist isn't a distant event
(32:23):
confined to history books orstained glass windows.
It's a living reality, one thatdemands our response.
The stigma of Sister Agneschallenge us to look beyond the
surface of our faith.
They invite us to ask, are wewilling to carry the weight of
the cross in our own lives?
Are we prepared to suffer withChrist not for the sake of pain,
but for the sake of love?
(32:43):
In her quiet endurance, SisterAgnes became a mirror of the
Savior's heart, showing us thattrue devotion isn't just in
words or rituals.
It's in the willingness tobleed, to ache, to offer
everything for the sake ofothers.
As we reflect on thisextraordinary sign, we're
reminded that the messages ofAkita aren't relics of the past.
(33:05):
They're a clarion call fortoday's church, urging us to
deepen our prayer, to embracesacrifice, and to cling to the
truth of the gospel.
Sister Agnes's wounds weretemporary, they healed over
time, but their lesson remainseternal.
To participate in Christ'spassion is to share in his
mission of redemption.
A call to listen the enduringvoice of Akita.
(33:29):
As we reflect on the profoundmessages of Our Lady of Akita,
delivered through Sister AgnesSasagawa, we stand at a
crossroads of faith andfidelity.
The warnings and pleas of theBlessed Mother echoed through
the decades, urgent as ever,urging today's church to return
to prayer, penance, andunwavering trust in God's mercy.
(33:49):
At Journeys of Faith we arereminded of our mission to
deepen the spiritual lives ofCatholics through the Eucharist
Marian devotion and the witnessof the saints.
Akita is not just a story ofsupernatural events, it's a
summons to live with courage andconviction rooted in the
teachings of the magisterium.
(34:10):
Let us heed Mary's call as apersonal invitation.
Whether through a pilgrimage tosacred sites, a quiet moment
with a devotional book, or arenewed commitment to the
rosary, we can embody thelessons of Akita.
Journeys of faith stands withyou, offering resources, media,
and experiences to guide yourpath.
Together, let's answer Our Ladyof Akita with hearts open to
(34:34):
transformation, trusting thather maternal guidance will lead
us closer to Christ in thesechallenging times.
Thanks for listening to SuperSaints Podcast.
Be sure to click the link in thedescription for special news
items.
Hello family, welcome to Journeys of Faith
Super Saints Podcast.
Brother Joseph Fryodenhovenhere.
Be sure to look at thedescription for special
information of interest to you,and also there is more to this
article.
Sister Agnes and the Messages ofAkita Lessons for Today's
Church.
(00:20):
In the quiet, unassuming town ofAkita, Japan, a profound
spiritual drama unfolded in the1970s, one that continues to
echo through the corridors ofCatholic faith with a resonance
that feels almost otherworldly.
Here, in a humble convent,Sister Agnes Sasagawa, a deaf
(00:41):
nun of the handmaids of theEucharist, became the unlikely
recipient of messages from OurLady of Akita, urgent, piercing
warnings and calls to repentancethat seem tailor-made for the
struggles of today's church.
At Journeys of Faith, we aredrawn to these moments where the
divine intersects with thehuman, where the Virgin Mary is
(01:01):
the ultimate mother and guide,offers her children a roadmap
through turbulent times.
The story of Akita is not just ahistorical footnote, it is a
living testament to the power ofMarian devotion and the urgency
of heeding heaven's voice.
As a ministry rooted inEucharistic reverence and
unwavering loyalty to theCatholic magisterium, we see in
(01:23):
Sister Agnes's experiences amirror to our own mission, to
illuminate the mysteries offaith for a world in desperate
need of hope, from the weepingstatue of Our Lady to the stark
prophecies of chastism andrenewal, the events of Akita are
a call to prayer, penance, andfidelity, themes that resonate
deeply with our work at journeysof faith to foster spiritual
(01:47):
growth through pilgrimages,retreats, and sacred media.
What unfolded in that remoteJapanese convent was no mere
curiosity.
It was a supernaturalintervention approved by the
local bishop and recognized forits authenticity, carrying
messages that pierce the heartof modern crises, division,
(02:07):
moral decay, and a drifting awayfrom the sacraments.
As we delve into the life ofSister Agnes and the revelations
of Our Lady of Akita, let usapproach with awe and a
readiness to learn.
These are not just stores, theyare lessons etched in tears and
grace, urging us to return tothe Eucharist, to cling to
(02:27):
Mary's intercession, and tostand firm in the teachings of
the Church.
Join us on this journey ofreflection as we uncover what
Akita means for Catholics todayand how it can ignite a renewed
fire of devotion in our souls.
(02:51):
In the shadow of World War II,Japan emerged as a nation
grappling with profound loss andtransformation.
The atomic bombings of Hiroshimaand Nagasaki in 1945 left scars
not just on the landscape but onthe soul of the country, with
hundreds of thousands dead and acultural identity shaken to its
(03:11):
core.
Amid this devastation, theCatholic Church in Japan, a tiny
minority in a predominantlyShinto and Buddhist society,
faced its own reckoning.
Catholics made up less than 1%of the population, roughly
100,000 souls in a nation ofmillions, yet their presence
(03:32):
carried a weight of historytracing back to the missionary
efforts of St.
Francis Xavier in the 16thcentury.
Post-war Japan, however, was acrucible of change, and the
church found itself navigating alandscape of both suspicion and
opportunity.
The American occupation 1945 to1952 brought a wave of Western
(03:52):
influence, including a newconstitution guaranteeing
religious freedom.
For Japanese Catholics, longmarginalized since the brutal
persecutions of the Edo period,this was a lifeline.
Churches that had been shutteredor forced underground could
reopen, and missionaries,particularly from the United
States, poured in to rebuild.
Yet the trauma of war lingered.
(04:14):
Nagasaki, a historic center ofJapanese Catholicism, had been
ground zero for the secondatomic bomb, obliterating the
Urokami Cathedral and killingthousands of the faithful in an
instant.
Survivors whispered of divinejudgment or martyrdom, their
faith tested in waysunimaginable.
(04:35):
The church's response was one ofquiet resilience, rebuilding not
just structures but communities,offering solace to a people
hungry for meaning in theaftermath of defeat.
By the 1970s, when the messagesof Our Lady of Akita would
emerge, Japanese Catholicism hadgrown slightly but remained a
cultural outlier.
(04:56):
The faithful were often viewedwith curiosity or distrust,
their beliefs seen as foreign ina society still wrestling with
its own spiritual identity.
Converts were few, often drawnby personal encounters with
missionaries or the witness ofCatholic charity in the postwar
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recovery.
Yet, beneath this surface ofstruggle there was a deepening
hunger for the transcendent.
The rapid modernization andeconomic boom of the nineteen
sixties and nineteen seventiesleft many Japanese feelings
spiritually adrift, and forsome, the ancient rituals and
promises of Catholicism offeredan anchor.
(05:38):
It was in this complex, wounded,yet searching context that the
apparitions at Akita wouldunfold, speaking to a small but
fervent community and eventuallyto the universal church with a
message of urgency and hope.
Join us on a journey of faithwith Our Lady of Akita.
At Journeys of Faith, we're notjust about telling stories of
(06:00):
miracles and messages like thoseof Sister Agnes and Our Lady of
Akita, we're about living them.
Inspired by the awe andreverence of these divine
encounters, we invite you todeepen your spiritual walk with
us.
Our mission, rooted in the heartof Catholic tradition and
Eucharistic devotion, is toguide you closer to Christ
through the intercession of Maryand the wisdom of the saints.
(06:24):
Take the next step on yourpilgrimage of faith with these
transformative opportunities.
Explore our resources, dive intoour vast collection of Catholic
media, including books like ThisIs My Body, This Is My Blood,
and Multimedia that unpack themysteries of Akita and beyond.
Join a pilgrimage, experiencethe sacred first hand with our
(06:45):
expertly curated retreats andpilgrimages, connecting you to
holy sites and stories thatinspire.
Shop devotional treasures, visitour renowned gift shop online or
in person for thousands of itemsto nurture your devotion to our
lady and the Eucharist.
Let's journey together, visitjourneys of faith today, and let
the messages of Akita igniteyour faith anew.
(07:08):
The early life and conversion ofSister Agnes Katsuko Sasagawa.
In the quiet, unassuming town ofNagasaki, Japan, a young Agnes
Katsuko Sasagawa entered theworld on March 28, 1931, into a
landscape still scarred by thehorrors of war and the atomic
devastation that would mark herhomeland just over a decade
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later.
Her early life was not one ofovert piety or predestined
sanctity, rather it was ajourney through hardship and
loss, a crucible that wouldforge a soul open to the divine
whispers of Our Lady of Akita.
Born into a Buddhist family,Agnes grew up steeped in the
cultural and spiritualtraditions of her ancestors, far
(07:53):
removed from the Catholic faiththat would later define her
life, yet even in those earlyyears, there was a quiet
searching, a yearning forsomething beyond the visible,
though she could not yet nameit.
At the tender age of nineteen,Agnes faced a trial that would
test her resilience, a severeillness that left her partially
(08:14):
paralyzed after a botchedappendectomy.
Bedridden and grappling with herown fragility, she encountered
the kindness of Catholic nurseswho cared for her with a
tenderness that planted thefirst seeds of curiosity about
their faith.
Their compassion was a silentsermon, speaking to her of a
love that transcended mere duty.
(08:37):
It was during this period ofphysical weakness that Agnes
began to explore Christianity,drawn not by grand theological
arguments, but by the livedwitness of those who embodied
Christ's mercy.
Her conversion to Catholicism innineteen fifty six at the age of
twenty five was not a sudden,dramatic epiphany, but a gradual
(08:57):
unfolding, much like the slowblooming of a cherry blossom
under the gentle warmth ofspring.
Baptized into the church, shetook the name Agnes, a nod to
the virgin martyr whose purityand courage would echo in her
own life's mission.
Yet, even as she embraced hernew faith, challenges persisted,
deafness struck her, a profoundisolation that could have
(09:21):
embittered a lesser spirit.
Instead, Agnes found in hersilence a space for God to
speak, a preparation for theextraordinary role she would
play as a vessel for themessages of Our Lady of Akita.
Her call to religious life cameas naturally as breathing,
leading her to join theHandmaids of the Eucharist in
1969, a small community inAkita, Japan.
(09:44):
Here in the remote northernreaches of the country, Sister
Agnes Katsuko Sasagawa wouldstep into a chapter of her life
that none could have foreseen, achapter where the ordinary would
collide with the miraculous, anda humble nun would become a
conduit for heavenly warningsand graces meant for the entire
(10:07):
church.
The founding of the handmaids ofthe Holy Eucharist.
In the quiet, unassuming town ofAkita, Japan, a profound
spiritual legacy took root in1970 with the founding of the
handmaids of the Holy Eucharist,a small community of women
dedicated to a light to life ofprayer and Eucharistic devotion.
(10:31):
This was no ordinary religiousorder.
It was a humble yet powerfulresponse to a world increasingly
distracted from the sacred.
The handmaids, under theguidance of their founder,
sought to live out a radicalcommitment to Christ in the
Eucharist, offering their livesas a silent witness to his real
presence, a mission that wouldsoon intertwine with the
(10:52):
extraordinary messages of OurLady of Akita.
The origins of the handmaids aresteeped in a deep reverence for
the blessed sacrament, adevotion that shaped their daily
rhythm of prayer, adoration, andsacrifice.
They were called to be spiritualsentinels, guarding the heart of
the church through their hiddenlives of intercession.
(11:12):
In a culture where Christianitywas a minority, their quiet
fidelity stood as a beacon,drawing souls to the mystery of
God's love made manifest in theEucharist.
It was within this context ofprofound dedication that Sister
Agnes Katsuko Sasagawa, a memberof the Handmaids, would receive
(11:33):
the heavenly messages that shookthe faithful worldwide.
The founding of the Handmaidswasn't just about establishing a
community, it was about plantinga seed of renewal in a world
desperate for spiritualgrounding.
Their charism, rooted inEucharistic adoration and marine
devotion, became the fertilesoil from which the messages of
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Akita would emerge, messages ofwarning, repentance, and hope.
The handmaid's commitment toprayer and sacrifice provided
the backdrop for our lady's callto conversion, a call that
echoed through Sister Agnes'svisions and continues to
resonate with the church today.
First apparition, the voice fromthe tabernacle in the quiet,
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unassuming convent of thehandmaids of the Holy Eucharist
in Akita, Japan, somethingextraordinary broke through the
ordinary on June twelfth,nineteen seventy-three.
Sister Agnes Sasagawa, a humblenun with a life already marked
by physical suffering andspiritual depth, was praying
before the Blessed Sacramentwhen a voice, clear, resonant,
(12:39):
and undeniably divine, spokefrom the tabernacle.
It wasn't a whisper in her mindor a vague feeling, it was a
direct piercing call that wouldalter her life and send ripples
through the church.
The voice, as Sister Agnes laterrecounted, carried the tender
yet commanding tone of theBlessed Virgin Mary, our Lady of
Akita.
(12:59):
It urged her to pray with fervorfor the reparation of sins, to
offer her sufferings for theconversion of sinners, and to
prepare for a message that wouldsoon unfold.
This wasn't just a personalencounter, it was a summons to a
mission, a reminder of theweight of sin in the world and
the urgent need for penance.
Imagine the weight of thatmoment a solitary nun kneeling
(13:21):
in the dim light of a chapel,hearing the mother of God speak
from the very presence of Christin the Eucharist.
It's the kind of story thatstops you cold, that demands you
sit with the mystery of God'schoice to speak through the
lowly.
This first apparition wasn'taccompanied by visions or
dramatic signs, but itssimplicity is what makes it so
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profound.
The voice from the tabernaclerooted the message in the heart
of Catholic devotion, the realpresence of Jesus in the
Eucharist.
It was as if our lady wassaying, Start here, return to
Him.
Everything flows from thissacred mystery.
For a church often distracted bythe noise of the world, this
(14:06):
moment in Akita is a starkreminder of where our gaze
should always rest.
Sister Agnes, in her obedienceand humility, became a vessel
for a message that wasn't justfor her, but for all of us, a
call to listen, to pray, and tosacrifice in a world that so
desperately needs it.
The three messages of Our Ladyof Akita explain.
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In the quiet, remote village ofAkita, Japan, Our Lady delivered
three piercing messages toSister Agnes Sasagawa between
July and October of 1973.
These messages steeped inurgency and maternal concern,
cut through the noise of ourmodern world like a blade,
demanding attention andreflection from the faithful.
They are not mere historicalcuriosities but living calls to
(14:51):
action, resonating with thechallenges facing today's
church.
Let's unpack each one with theclarity and reverence they
deserve, digging into theirspiritual weight and timeless
relevance.
The first message given on julysixth, nineteen seventy three
came as a tender yet firm pleafor prayer and sacrifice.
Our Lady warned of a comingchastisement if humanity did not
(15:15):
turn back to God, emphasizingthe power of the rosary as a
shield against spiritual decay.
She urged Sister Agnes to prayfor the conversion of sinners
and to offer her own sufferingsin reparation for the sins of
the world.
It's a message that hits hard,reminding us that personal
holiness isn't just a privateaffair but a communal
(15:36):
responsibility.
In an era where individualismoften drowns out the call to
communal penance, this firstmessage is a stark wake-up call
to intercede for others throughprayer and sacrifice.
The second message, delivered onAugust 3rd, 1973, turned up the
heat.
Our Lady spoke with chillingprecision about division within
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the church itself, foretellingthat the work of the devil will
infiltrate even into the churchin such a way that one will see
cardinals opposing cardinals,bishops against bishops.
She lamented the loss ofreverence for the Eucharist and
the growing apathy among thefaithful.
This isn't just a prediction,it's a diagnosis of a spiritual
(16:19):
malaise that we can still seefestering today.
Her words compel us to guard thesanctity of the blessed
sacrament and to stand firm infidelity to the teachings of the
magisterium, even when thecultural tides pull us in the
opposite direction.
The third message on Octoberthirteenth, nineteen seventy
three is perhaps the mosthaunting.
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Our Lady painted a grim pictureof a world unrepentant, warning
that if men do not repent andbetter themselves, the Father
will inflict a terriblepunishment on all humanity.
She spoke of fire falling fromthe sky, of widespread
suffering, and of the survivorsenvying the dead.
Yet even in this dire prophecy,her maternal heart shone
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through, she offered hopethrough the rosary and devotion
to her immaculate heart as apath to mitigation.
This message isn't meant toparalyze us with fear but to
ignite a fire of conversion.
It's a gut punch, yes, but alsoa lifeline, urging us to cling
to prayers, the anchor inturbulent times.
These three messages deliveredthrough the humble vessel of
Sister Agnes aren't just relicsof the past.
(17:25):
They are a mirror held up to ourpresent struggles, division,
irreverence, and a worldteetering on the edge of
spiritual collapse.
They demand that we, as membersof the body of Christ, take
stock of our own hearts andcommit to the hard, unglamorous
work of repentance and prayer.
Our Lady of Akita's voice echoesacross the decades, as sharp and
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urgent as ever, calling us to bebeacons of light in a darkening
world.
Connection between Akita andFatima prophecies.
When you dig into the messagesof Our Lady of Akita delivered
through Sister Agnes Sasagawa inthe 1970s, you can't help but
notice the eerie parallels tothe Fatima apparitions of 1917.
(18:12):
Both sets of prophecies given bythe Blessed Virgin Mary carry a
weighty urgency, a call torepentance, prayer, and
sacrifice to avert catastrophicconsequences for humanity.
As Catholics, we're not justreading history here, we're
uncovering a spiritual roadmapthat feels as relevant now as it
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was decades or centuries ago.
At Fatima, our lady warned ofwars, suffering, and the spread
of errors if her requests forprayer and consecration were
ignored.
She spoke of a bishop in whitefacing immense trials and hinted
at global turmoil.
Fast forward to Akita, and thetone is just as grave.
Mary's messages to Sister Agnesspeak of a great chastisement
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worse than the deluge with firefalling from the sky and much of
humanity facing destruction ifsin continues unabated.
She pleads for the rosary to beprayed daily and for the
faithful to offer sacrifices forsinners.
Sound familiar?
It's almost as if Fatima'swarnings were amplified in
Akita, dialed up for a worldthat hadn't fully heeded the
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earlier call.
What's striking is the sharedemphasis on the role of the
church itself in these crises.
In Fatima, our lady pointed tothe need for the consecration of
Russia to her immaculate heartas a path to peace.
In Akita, the messages take adarker turn, warning of division
within the church, withcardinals opposing cardinals,
(19:41):
bishops against bishops.
This internal strife, Marylaments, will compound the
world's suffering if prayer andfidelity to God's law don't
prevail.
For those of us who hold fast tothe magisterium, these words
aren't just chilling, they're asobering reminder of our
responsibility to pray for ourshepherds and to stand firm in
(20:02):
orthodoxy.
Then there's the personal costof obedience in both stories.
The Fatih Massirs, Lucia,Francisco, and Hacinta endured
skepticism, ridicule, and evenimprisonment for sharing Mary's
words.
Sister Agnes, too, faced her owntrials, including physical
suffering and the burden ofrelaying messages that many
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would rather dismiss.
Yet in both cases, the blessedmother's presence brought not
just warnings, but profoundhope.
She promised that her immaculateheart would triumph, that prayer
and sacrifice could change thecourse of history.
That's the thread tying Akita toFatima, a divine insistence that
we, the faithful, have a role toplay in God's plan.
(20:43):
As we reflect on theseconnections, we're left with a
sense of awe at how our lady'svoice echoes across time and
place from a Portuguese villageto a remote Japanese convent.
The prophecies of Fatima andAkita aren't isolated incidents.
They're part of a largertapestry of Marian intervention,
urging the church to wake up, topray, to repent.
(21:05):
For today's Catholics, grapplingwith cultural shifts and
internal challenges, thesemessages aren't just relics of
the past, they're a clarion callto action.
The Eucharistic heart of theAkita apparitions.
Dive into the profound spirituallayers of the Akita apparitions,
and you'll uncover a pulsingEucharistic core that resonates
(21:28):
with the deepest currents ofCatholic devotion.
Between 1973 and 1981, SisterAgnes Sasagawa, a humble
Japanese nun, received messagesfrom Our Lady of Akita that
weren't just warnings or callsto prayer.
They were a piercing reminder ofthe real presence in the
(21:50):
Eucharist as the lifeblood ofthe church.
This wasn't abstract theology,it was raw, urgent, and drenched
in reverence for Christ's bodyand blood, a theme that echoes
through every tear shed by thewooden statue of Mary in that
remote convent.
Picture this, a small,unassuming chapel in the
Japanese countryside far fromthe Vatican's marble halls,
(22:12):
where a statue of the VirginMary weeps one hundred and one
times over nearly a decade,scientifically tested, these
tears, human tears, mind you,carry a weight beyond chemistry.
They point to a sorrow tieddirectly to the neglect of the
Eucharist, as our Lady'smessages to Sister Agnes lament
(22:32):
a world growing cold to thesacrifice of the altar.
On october thirteenth, nineteenseventy three, the anniversary
of the Fatima miracle, Mary'svoice cut through with a
sobering clarity.
Humanity's indifference to sinand sacrilege wounds her son's
sacred heart most acutely in thedesecration of the blessed
(22:53):
sacrament.
It's a gut punch to any Catholicwho's ever taken the host for
granted.
But this isn't just about divinegrief, it's a call to action.
Our Lady of Akita urged SisterAgnes to foster a renewed awe
for the Eucharist, to see eachMass as a re-entering into
Calvary where Christ's offeringis not a relic of history, but a
(23:15):
living reality.
The message is tied personalconversion to Eucharistic
devotion, warning that withoutthis anchor, the church risks
drifting into chaos.
Think of it as a spiritualdiagnostic.
If the Eucharist isn't at thecenter, everything else, prayer,
penance, even Marian devotion,loses its grounding.
Akita's visions paired with theweeping statue aren't mere
(23:38):
spectacle.
They're a mirror held up totoday's faithful, asking us to
examine how we approach thealtar.
And let's not gloss over thecultural context.
In Japan, a nation whereChristians are a tiny minority,
the Eucharistic emphasis ofAkita cuts against the grain of
secularism and religiouspluralism.
(24:00):
It's a bold statement that theuniversal truth of Christ's
presence in the Eucharisttranscends borders, languages,
and histories.
Sister Agnes, often in physicalagony during these visions, bore
witness to a mystery thatdoesn't bend to modern
skepticism.
It demands a response.
The Akita apparitions at theirheart are a plea to return to
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the source and summit of ourfaith, to kneel before the
tabernacle with the sametrembling awe that Sister Agnes
felt when Mary spoke.
Miraculous healings and verifiedmedical cures.
In the quiet, unassuming villageof Akita, Japan, the messages of
Our Lady of Akita deliveredthrough Sister Agnes Sasagawa
(24:45):
are not merely words etched inspiritual lore, they are backed
by tangible, awe-inspiring signsthat defy human explanation.
Among the most compellingaspects of the Akita apparitions
are the documented healings andmedical cures associated with
the sight and the intercessionof the Blessed Virgin.
(25:06):
These events stand as a beaconof hope for today's church,
reminding us that the divine isnot distant but intimately
involved in our suffering andredemption.
One of the most striking casestied to Akita is the miraculous
healing of a South Korean womanin 1982 who suffered from
terminal brain cancer.
Her prognosis was grim.
Doctors gave her mere weeks tolive.
(25:28):
Yet after fervent prayer to OurLady of Akita and a pilgrimage
to the site, her conditioninexplicably reversed.
Medical scans that once showed afatal tumor revealed nothing but
healthy tissue.
Her doctors, baffled and unableto offer a scientific
explanation, could onlyacknowledge the unexplainable.
(25:50):
This case, among others, wasscrutinized and later affirmed
by ecclesiastical authorities asa sign of divine intervention, a
modern echo of the healingsChrist performed in the gospels.
These verified cures are notmere anecdotes or pious
exaggerations, they have beensubjected to rigorous
investigation, often involvingmedical professionals and church
(26:12):
officials who approach suchclaims with a healthy
skepticism.
The process mirrors themeticulous inquiries at Lourdes
or Fatima, where the bar fordeclaring a miracle is set
extraordinarily high.
In Akita, the healings serve asa testament to the power of
faith and the maternal care ofMary, who as our lady of Akita
weeps for humanity's sins whileoffering her intercession for
(26:36):
our physical and spiritualailments.
What does this mean for us asfaithful Catholics in a world
often skeptical of thesupernatural?
It's a call to trust, to leaninto the mystery of God's grace
even when it defies logic orscience.
The healings at Akita are notjust historical curiosities,
they are living invitations todeepen our devotion, to pray
(26:57):
with the same fervor as thosewho sought Mary's help, and to
remember that the Mother of Godstands ready to intercede for us
in our own moments ofdesperation.
They challenge today's church toreclaim a sense of wonder, to
preach not just with words, butwith the undeniable power of
God's works among us.
(27:18):
The weeping wooden statue,significance and symbolism in
the quiet, unassuming convent ofAkita, Japan, a wooden statue of
Our Lady became the epicenter ofa divine mystery that still
reverberates through theCatholic world.
Between 1973 and 1981, thishumble carving of the Virgin
(27:41):
Mary wept human tears 101 timesby the count of witnesses,
bearing a message of urgency andsorrow that cuts through the
noise of our modern age.
For those of us who seek thefingerprints of God in the
ordinary, the weeping statue ofOur Lady of Akita stands as a
haunting reminder of heaven'snearness, a call to listen when
(28:04):
the world would rather scrollpast.
The statue itself, carved by alocal Buddhist artisan, depicts
Mary in a posture of sereneintercession, her hands folded
in prayer, her gaze castdownward as if bearing the
weight of humanity's struggles.
Yet it was on January 4th, 1975,when Sister Agnes Sasagawa, the
(28:29):
visionary at the heart of theseevents, first noticed tears
streaming from the statue'seyes, that the ordinary became
extraordinary.
Scientific analysis laterconfirm the tears were of human
origin, define explanation, andinviting awe.
Blood and sweat also appeared onthe statue, mirroring the wounds
(28:49):
of Christ and the anguish of amother witnessing her children
stray.
Symbolically, these tears are apiercing cry from the heart of
Mary, a reflection of hermaternal grief over a world
steeped in sin and indifference.
They echo the warning shedelivered through Sister Agnes,
messages of impendingchastisement if humanity does
(29:10):
not repent, coupled with a pleafor prayer, penance, and
fidelity to the gospel.
The weeping statue is not merelya miracle to gawk at, it's a
signpost pointing to thespiritual malaise of our times.
In an era where faith is oftenreduced to a checkbox or a
cultural relic, the tears ofAkita challenge us to confront
(29:32):
our own hardness of heart.
Are we listening to the motherwho weeps for us, or are we too
distracted by the endless grindof daily life?
The blood and sweat too carryprofound meaning, uniting Mary's
sorrow with the passion of herson.
They remind us that the path toredemption is not a passive one,
it demands sacrifice, awillingness to share in Christ's
(29:55):
suffering.
For the faithful, the weepingstatue becomes a tangible link
to the To the mysteries of thecross and the Immaculate Heart,
urging us to embrace thediscomfort of conversion rather
than shy away from it.
It's a gut punch of a message.
Heaven is not indifferent to ourchoices, and neither should we
be.
As we meditate on thisextraordinary sign, we're
(30:16):
invited to see beyond the woodand varnish to the reality of a
God who speaks through theunexpected, a God who chooses a
remote Japanese convent to shakeus awake.
The weeping statue of Akita isnot just a historical curiosity,
it's a living call to prayer, areminder that the tears of Mary
are shed for each of us,pleading for our return to the
(30:39):
heart of the church and themercy of her son.
Stigmata of Sister Agnes, aparticipation in Christ's
Passion.
In the quiet, hallowed halls ofa Japanese convent, Sister Agnes
Sasagawa bore a mystery thatpierced the veil between the
earthly and the divine.
(31:00):
In nineteen seventy-three, asshe knelt in prayer before a
statue of Our Lady of Akita,something extraordinary
unfolded.
Her hands began to bleed.
Not from injury, not fromaccident, but from wounds that
mirrored the crucifixion ofChrist Himself.
(31:20):
These were stigmata, the visiblemarks of his passion etched into
her flesh as a sign of profoundspiritual union.
The wounds weren't justphysical, they carried a weight
of meaning that reverberatedthrough the small community of
the handmaids of the Eucharistin Akita.
Sister Agnes, a humble andunassuming soul, didn't seek
attention or acclaim, yet hersuffering became a silent
(31:41):
sermon, a living testament tothe reality of Christ's
sacrifice.
The blood that seeped from herpalms wasn't merely hers, it was
a call to the faithful toremember the cost of redemption.
Each drop seemed to whisper, doyou see what he endured for you?
What's striking about SisterAgnes's stigmata is the context
(32:02):
in which they appeared.
They coincided with messagesfrom Our Lady of Akita, urgent
pleas for repentance and prayerin a world teetering on the edge
of spiritual collapse.
The wounds were not justpersonal, they were prophetic.
They pointed to a church and ahumanity in need of healing, a
reminder that the passion ofChrist isn't a distant event
(32:23):
confined to history books orstained glass windows.
It's a living reality, one thatdemands our response.
The stigma of Sister Agneschallenge us to look beyond the
surface of our faith.
They invite us to ask, are wewilling to carry the weight of
the cross in our own lives?
Are we prepared to suffer withChrist not for the sake of pain,
but for the sake of love?
(32:43):
In her quiet endurance, SisterAgnes became a mirror of the
Savior's heart, showing us thattrue devotion isn't just in
words or rituals.
It's in the willingness tobleed, to ache, to offer
everything for the sake ofothers.
As we reflect on thisextraordinary sign, we're
reminded that the messages ofAkita aren't relics of the past.
(33:05):
They're a clarion call fortoday's church, urging us to
deepen our prayer, to embracesacrifice, and to cling to the
truth of the gospel.
Sister Agnes's wounds weretemporary, they healed over
time, but their lesson remainseternal.
To participate in Christ'spassion is to share in his
mission of redemption.
A call to listen the enduringvoice of Akita.
(33:29):
As we reflect on the profoundmessages of Our Lady of Akita,
delivered through Sister AgnesSasagawa, we stand at a
crossroads of faith andfidelity.
The warnings and pleas of theBlessed Mother echoed through
the decades, urgent as ever,urging today's church to return
to prayer, penance, andunwavering trust in God's mercy.
(33:49):
At Journeys of Faith we arereminded of our mission to
deepen the spiritual lives ofCatholics through the Eucharist
Marian devotion and the witnessof the saints.
Akita is not just a story ofsupernatural events, it's a
summons to live with courage andconviction rooted in the
teachings of the magisterium.
(34:10):
Let us heed Mary's call as apersonal invitation.
Whether through a pilgrimage tosacred sites, a quiet moment
with a devotional book, or arenewed commitment to the
rosary, we can embody thelessons of Akita.
Journeys of faith stands withyou, offering resources, media,
and experiences to guide yourpath.
Together, let's answer Our Ladyof Akita with hearts open to
(34:34):
transformation, trusting thather maternal guidance will lead
us closer to Christ in thesechallenging times.
Thanks for listening to SuperSaints Podcast.
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