Vatican repeats caution on visions of Maria Valtorta (Katolisch)

The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) has reaffirmed that the writings of Maria Valtorta are not recognized by the Church as authentic revelations.

Maria Valtorta, an Italian mystic of the 20th century, drew a wide audience with her massive work The God-Man, in which she described visions that she said she had received from Jesus Christ. The DDF, responding to persistent questions about the visions, issued a statement on March 5 saying that the Church “does not recognize their divine inspiration.”

The DDF judgment matches a negative verdict that had been issued by the same office—then known as the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith—in 1985, under the direction of then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger.