Approving an apparition of Mary as “authentic” comes only after careful and rigorous investigation by the Church. Our Lady’s appearance at Tepeyac was one that has been thus authenticated. However, there is a sense in which even authenticated Marian apparitions are inauthentic. By this I mean that visionaries never actually see Mary as she now truly is after the singular grace of her assumption and glorification. Otherwise, how could we explain the various forms she assumes in her appearances? For, even she were to appear with all the features of a Jewish woman, we would still not be seeing her as she now is. In this, we recall a similar inability of the disciples to truly see Jesus in his resurrected and glorified body. And so to Mary Magdalene he seemed to be a gardener, to the disciples en route to Emmaus just another clueless stranger; on other occasions manifesting the wounds of his passion, whereas at other times seen without them. And so it is that appearances of Mary (or Jesus) are a transitional and merciful condescension to our present weakness and the impairment of our spiritual vision and its incapacity to “see” the resurrected Christ or Mary crowned in glory. And so, while never disparaging visions or appearances of Mary, spiritual masters warn against seeking visions and opening ourselves to being deceived by false visions. Accordingly, we might imitate Saint Thérèse who, towards the end of her life exclaimed: I do not desire visions or revelations. I prefer the monotony of sacrifice and love. And then added: I am happy to wait until heaven to see the reality of things as they are.