Warraq, Egypt

More than 200,000 (Christians and Muslims) witnessed the December 2009 apparitions on the domes of Virgin Mary and Archangel Michael Coptic Orthodox Church in El-Warraq district in greater Cairo's Nile district. Apparition lights in the night sky could also be seen several kilometers away from the church. People used their mobile phones to make videos of the apparitions and share them via Bluetooth and on YouTube. The full silhouette of the Blessed Holy Virgin Mary dressed in light blue gown could be clearly seen over the domes of the church between the church crosses. The apparitions also received wide media coverage in Egyptian newspapers and Arabic TV channels. The apparitions started in the Coptic month of Kiahk (December 2009), the Marian month/Nativity Fast in the Coptic Calendar. During this month the Coptic Church celebrates a special Midnight Praise dedicated to the Holy Virgin and the Incarnation.

The Holy Virgin appeared in her full height in luminous robes, above the middle dome of the church, in pure white dress and a royal blue belt. She had a crown on her head, above which appeared the cross on top of the dome. The crosses on top of the church’s domes and towers glowed brightly with light. The huge crowds gathered in the vicinity of the church have seen luminous white pigeons soaring above the church during various times of the night, as well as a star which emerges suddenly in the sky, travels some 200 meters across, then disappears.