Speaking on the 44th anniversary of her first apparition on January 12, 1982, the 62-year-old Mukamazimpaka emphasised the enduring relevance of the Virgin Mary's calls for sincere prayer, genuine love, and conversion.
The anniversary was solemnly commemorated with a Holy Mass at the Chapel of Our Lady of Kibeho, presided over by Bishop Célestin Hakizimana of the Diocese of Gikongoro. He was joined by retired Bishop Kizito Bahujimihigo of Kibungo Diocese, numerous priests, religious, and pilgrims from Rwanda and abroad.
The Kibeho apparitions began on November 28, 1981, when Alphonsine Mumureke, a student at Kibeho Secondary School (now Our Lady of the Word Secondary School), reported seeing the Virgin Mary.
Mukamazimpaka followed on January 12, 1982, and Marie Claire Mukangango on March 2, 1982.
All three were teenage students at the small girls' school of about 150 pupils. The Catholic Church, after thorough investigation, officially recognised the apparitions to Alphonsine and Nathalie in 2001, making Kibeho the only approved Marian site in Africa.
Marie Claire Mukangango was killed with her husband during the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.
Mukamazimpaka's experience
In an interview with IGIHE, Mukamazimpaka recounted that the Virgin Mary appeared to her countless times between January 12, 1982, and December 3, 1983, sometimes privately in her dormitory bed, sometimes with classmates, and on 30 public occasions before large crowds.
She described the Virgin Mary as a young woman of extraordinary beauty, aged between 20 and 30, dressed in a seamless white gown and a blue veil, neither distinctly Black nor white.
The apparitions typically came from the east, with Mary standing in the air about four metres above the ground.
The visionaries were shown harrowing scenes of violence and rivers of blood, images later understood as foretelling the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. They also received personal guidance about their future lives.
Mukamazimpaka was told she would never marry and would remain in Kibeho to pray for the world, a calling she has faithfully followed.
Alphonsine Mumureke, who was told she would become a nun, now lives as a religious sister in Italy.
Mukamazimpaka urged people worldwide to heed the core messages: sincere prayer without hypocrisy, authentic love for God and neighbour, and heartfelt conversion.
'The Virgin Mary often called us to be 'beautiful flowers', people filled with goodness and love, rather than withered ones who spread cruelty,' she said. 'Her message never ages. Only by living it can humanity find healing.'
She pointed to Kibeho's transformation as visible proof of the messages' power: once a little-known area, it is now a major pilgrimage site attracting over 1.2 million visitors from around the world, bringing spiritual peace and tangible development.
Concessa Mukarusagara, a former classmate of the visionaries, expressed sorrow that some Rwandans still overlook the message while pilgrims travel from distant countries to embrace it.
'This place is my home,' she told IGIHE. 'When I come here, I speak to my Mother, and she listens. I have seen her miracles and learned the patience she asked for. Praying the Rosary through Mary always resolves my difficulties.'
Bishop Célestin Hakizimana of Gikongoro Diocese highlighted Kibeho's ongoing fruitfulness: 'No one leaves Kibeho unchanged, spiritually or even physically. What was once an obscure sector has become a town of light, consolation and blessing for many.'
Today, Kibeho stands as Africa's sole Vatican-approved Marian apparition site, a beacon of hope and reconciliation 44 years after heaven, in the words of pilgrims, 'came down to visit us.'
IGIHE
