Religious experience and public cult: The case of Mary Ann Van Hoof.
Journal of Religion and Health March 1, 1989 S L Zimdars-Swartz
This study focuses on the first year (1950) of the apparitions of the Virgin Mary reported by Mary Ann Van Hoof of Necedah, Wisconsin. It argues that Van Hoof's experiences met not simply the needs of the community-at-large, but also helped the seer draw meaning from an emotionally-deprived and abusive childhood. The study concludes by suggesting that public serial apparitions are complex...