I repeat: I'm agnostic about Medjugorge

I have readers who are passionate about it on both sides. I've gotten hate mail for mentioning Medjugorge while failing to condemn it with might and main. I've gotten rebukes (and amens to those rebukes) for saying that, if the Church winds up condemning it, you'll have trouble convincing True Believers.

So many people seem to have a hair trigger about this particular phenomenon. I'm either with 'em or agin' 'em.

Except that I'm not. I am, I repeat, completely agnostic. I've seen good fruit from Medjugorge. I've met converts to the Faith whose life has been changed and who are profoundly observant Catholics. I've also seen things about Medjugorge that raise questions in my mind. And I've met many True Believers and True Disbelievers. That is, people whose minds are made up whom no amount of contrary evidence will persuade.

I am not among either of these groups. I have no devotion to Medjugorge. I have nothing against those who do. I also have nothing against those who are convinced it's a false private revelation. I'm agnostic. I don't know. I haven't made up my mind. I see no obligation to make up my mind. And should the Church make up its mind, I see no particular reason to doubt the Church should it affirm or deny the supernatural character of the events there. My attitude is "wait and see".

When I speak of True Believers I don't mean that anybody who credits Medjugorge is a sucker. What I mean is that every large cultural phenomenon (especially religious ones) has a certain percentage of people who will not accept the judgement of the Church. If Medjugorge is condemned, there will be a certain percentage of people who will go on trying to find a way to show either that the Church is wrong or that the condemnation isn't really a condemnation. Dittos if the Church approves Medjugorge: some percentage of people will chalk it up to the Smoke of Satan or whatever other explanation they can hold on to in order to preserve their conviction that they are right and the Church is either wrong or really agrees with them.

Me: I have nothing invested either way in Medjugorge. Whether the Church approves or condemns it, I'm down with that.