Jessica Gregori was just 5 years old when she saw something no one could explain.
It was in February 1995, on the outskirts of Civitavecchia, Italy. In front of a small statue of the Virgin Mary purchased at the Medjugorje shrine, the girl swore she had seen tears of blood running down the plaster face. It was not the only time: the statue, nicknamed ‘La Madonnina,’ wept blood 13 more times. Bishop Girolamo Grillo witnessed one of those episodes and said that was enough to overcome his skepticism. But when he proposed conducting a DNA test to find out where the blood came from, the men of the Gregori family refused.
Almost 30 years later, in April 2024, another statue belonging to the same family —this time in a grotto in the garden— began to exude a fragrant oil in front of a group of praying pilgrims. Everything was recorded. For skeptical scientists, cases like this often have simple explanations, such as a leaking pipe in the roof. For the Gregori family, it is faith that continues to manifest itself without asking permission.
