Our Lady of Cabra Island

Last updated

Our Lady of Cabra Island is a title of a purported apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary to several schoolgirls on Cabra Island, Lubang, Occidental Mindoro, the Philippines, from 1966 to 1972.

Contents

Visions

The supposed visions were first reported by a sixth grader, Belinda Villas, and her seven friends from the same grade level at Cabra Elementary School. The children described the figure in the alleged apparitions as a "beautiful lady wearing a white robe and a blue sash around her waist".

Their school’s principal, Juana V. Torreliza, then urged the children from the beginning to jot down the details of their encounters. One recorded vision has the lady smiling and with a sweet, reassuring voice, telling them in Tagalog: “Ako ang Inmaculada Concepción.” (“I am the Immaculate Conception.”)

While a small chapel has since been erected on the hilltop where the supposed apparitions occurred, the incident has not been formally approved by the Philippine Church or the Holy See.

Legacy

The children’s accounts led to a growing number of pilgrims from Manila and other islands. Their individual stories, notes, photographs, and the messages from the “lady bathed in light, and always smiling, always with a kindly expression on her face” were documented and published in the 1978 book The Apparitions of Cabra Islet. Copies can be found in many Catholic college libraries, in the National Library of the Philippines and the United States Library of Congress. [1]

Cultural influence

The purported apparitions eventually inspired the 1982 Ishmael Bernal drama film Himala , starring Nora Aunor and with screenplay by Ricky Lee. Produced by the Experimental Cinema of the Philippines, the film was first exhibited overseas in the Berlin International Film Festival. It later won the Viewer's Choice Award for the Best Film of All Time from the Asia-Pacific Region in the 2008 CNN Asia Pacific Screen Awards. [2] [3]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nora Aunor</span> Filipino actress, recording artist, film producer (born 1953)

Nora Cabaltera Villamayor, known professionally as Nora Aunor, is a Filipino actress, recording artist, and film producer. Aunor has also appeared in several stage plays, television shows and concerts. She is known as Philippine cinema's "Superstar" and was conferred as a National Artist of the Philippines for Film and Broadcast Arts in 2022. The Hollywood Reporter called her "The Grand Dame of Philippine Cinema" for her performances in the movies Taklub (Trap) and Hustisya (Justice), and for her contributions to the Philippine film industry.

Adolfo Borinaga Alix Jr., also known as Adolf Alix Jr., is a Filipino screenwriter and film director.

<i>Himala</i> 1982 Filipino film about Marian apparitions, directed by Ishmael Bernal

Himala ('Miracle') is a 1982 Filipino film directed by Ishmael Bernal and produced by the Experimental Cinema of the Philippines. It stars Nora Aunor as a young woman living in the province who claims to have seen a Marian apparition. The film story and script written by Ricky Lee was inspired by a series of alleged Marian apparitions appearing before schoolgirls, which took place from 1966 to 1972 on Cabra Island in Lubang, Occidental Mindoro.

Marilou Correa Diaz-Abaya was a Filipina multi-award winning film director. She was posthumously conferred the Order of National Artists of the Philippines for Film and Broadcast Arts in 2022, she was the founder and president of the Marilou Diaz-Abaya Film Institute and Arts Center, a film school based in Antipolo, Philippines. She was the director of the 1998 film José Rizal, a biographical film on the Philippines' national hero of the same name. She was part of the Second Golden Age of Philippine Cinema.

The Gawad Urian Awards are annual film awards in the Philippines presented since 1977 by the Manunuri ng Pelikulang Pilipino, a film critic organization composed of critics, writers, and scholars. It is the regarded as the highest award for a film given by critics in the Philippines and is seen as the counterpart of the United States' New York Film Critics Circle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lorna Tolentino</span> Filipino actress and film producer

Victoria Lorna Perez Aluquin-Fernandez, better known by her stage name Lorna Tolentino, sometimes known as L.T., an abbreviation of her screen name, is a Filipino actress, model, film producer and television personality. Dubbed as the "Prime Star", she is known for her dramatic roles in film and television and was the fourth actress to achieve the Grandslam status for her performance in the film Narito ang Puso Ko (1992). With a career spanning five decades, she has already appeared in 100 motion pictures and is cited by critics as one of the greatest Filipino actresses in Philippine cinema. She has received numerous accolades including seven FAMAS Awards, four Luna Awards, a Gawad Urian Award and two commendations from Asian Television Award.

The 6th Metro Manila Film Festival was held in 1980.

The 8th Metro Manila Film Festival was held in 1982.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cabra, Lubang</span> Barangay in Mimaropa, Philippines

Cabra is a barangay in the Philippines that covers the island of the same name. The island is the north-westernmost of the Lubang Group of Islands in the Verde Island Passage southwest of the country's main island of Luzon and northwest of the island of Mindoro. The barangay is administered as part of the municipality of Lubang, Occidental Mindoro.

<i>Thy Womb</i> 2012 Filipino film

Thy Womb is a 2012 Filipino drama film starring Nora Aunor, Bembol Roco, Mercedes Cabral, and Lovi Poe. Produced by Center Stage Productions and the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP), Melvin Mangada and Jaime Santiago, the film was written by Henry Burgos and directed by Brillante Mendoza. The film was one of the eight official entries to the 2012 Metro Manila Film Festival.

<i>Andrea, Paano Ba ang Maging Isang Ina?</i> 1990 Filipino film

Andrea, Paano Ba ang Maging Isang Ina?(Andrea, How Is It Like to Be a Mother?) is a 1990 Filipino film and an official entry to the 1990 Metro Manila Film Festival.

<i>Ina Ka ng Anak Mo</i> 1979 Filipino film

Ina Ka ng Anak Mo is a 1979 Filipino film directed by Lino Brocka and starring Nora Aunor. The film was an official entry to the 1979 Metro Manila Film Festival, and garnered several awards including Best Actor for Raoul Aragonn and a tie for Best Actress between Lolita Rodriguez and Nora Aunor. It also garnered several nominations in the following year's FAMAS and Gawad Urian. Despite its adult theme and rating, the film was successful at the box office during its commercial run. The story portrays the everyday life of the deeply religious Renata and her daughter Ester, who is married to Luis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nora Aunor filmography</span>

Nora Aunor is a Filipino actress, recording artist, and film producer who has worked in theatre, radio, television, concerts and film.

<i>Aparisyon</i> 2012 Filipino film

Aparisyon (transl.Apparition) is a 2012 Philippine psychological drama film written and directed by Isabel Sandoval. Set in early 1970s, where the story about the nuns in the period immediately preceding the declaration of martial law by Ferdinand Marcos. It is one of the official entries for the New Breed Full Length Feature Category in Cinemalaya 2012.

Amable Quiambao, better known by her stage name, Ama Quiambao, was a Filipino film, television and theater actress in the Philippines. She was best known for her roles in the films Himala and Diablo.

<i>Padre de Familia</i> (film) 2016 Filipino film

Padre de Familia is a 2016 independent family drama film, starring Nora Aunor and Coco Martin. The film was premiered at selected cinemas in Europe and the Middle East.

The 10th Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival, also billed as Cinemalaya X was held from August 1–10 of 2014 in Metro Manila, Philippines. The achievements of Cinemalaya over the past ten years are summed up in the festival's theme: A Decade of Connecting Dimensions. The theme highlights Cinemalaya as a flourishing network of individuals, groups and institutions with a common goal of developing and promoting Filipino independent filmmaking.

<i>Hustisya</i> 2014 Filipino film

Hustisya is a 2014 Filipino political thriller-drama film starring Nora Aunor. The film is about a woman working for a human trafficking agency. The film was written by Ricky Lee and directed by Joel Lamangan

The 33rd PMPC Star Awards for Movies, was organized by the Philippine Movie Press Club (PMPC) and recognizes the best films and filmmakers for the past year. The awards night was held on September 3, 2017 at the Newport Performing Arts Theater, Resorts World Manila, Pasay and aired on ABS-CBN.

References

  1. Albano, T. Jofransyden O. (1979). The Apparitions of Cabra Islet, Philippines. Alver Tied Charities and Cultural Circle. Retrieved 9 May 2014.
  2. "Filipino film 'Himala' wins CNN APSA Viewer's Choice Award". CNN.com. Retrieved on 2011-03-28.
  3. Dlanorsk5 (2008-12-26). "Nora Aunor HIMALA as CNN Viewer Choice Award as Best Film in Asia-Pacific". YouTube. Retrieved on 2011-03-28.