line of tears flowed down her face from the right eye, which ended in a teardrop. The weeping was continuous until 19 December, and then on the last two days of December, a total of eighteen days. The committee investigating the events determined that the weeping had been real. The ceremonial services commemorating the 250th anniversary of the first weeping and the 300th anniversary of the Union of Ungvár took place under the leadership of Cardinal József Mindszenty, the later witness to the faith, in the presence of 250,000 pilgrims on 8 September 1946. The ceremonial procession took place at the beginning of a new era, which would bring many trials for the religious. In 1948, the pilgrimage church received a designation of “basilica minor” from Pope Pius XII but two years later the Basilian monks were expelled from the monastery by the communist authorities and in their place the building was used to house people with psychological ailments. The subsequent pilgrimages were carried out under strict police supervision, and Máriapócs became inaccessible for the pilgrims of neighboring countries. Nevertheless, the significance of the customary processions did not change. All those who were afraid to display their religious identities in the vicinity of their carefully supervised homes often found their way to the sacraments in the safety of the multitudes. The collapse of communism in 1989-1990 brought important changes in the life of the Saint Shrine. Máriapócs was a significant place of celebration during the visit of Pope John Paul II to Hungary in 1991. After several decades it once again became possible to visit as pilgrims in organized groups, and, in 1999, a pilgrimage house was built to accommodate them. The Basilian fathers and sisters were allowed to return to Máriapócs. The infrastructural improvements, which had been neglected during the communist era, are currently underway. The external and internal renovation of the shrine church, as well as the improvement of the basilica’s surroundings, were accomplished with European Union funds during 2008-2010. See also Hungarian Greek Catholic Church References Sources Tamás Véghseő - Szilveszter Terdik, “…you have foreseen all of my paths…”: Byzantine Rite Catholics in Hungary, Strasbourg: Éditions Du Signe, 2012. External links The Shrine of Máriapócs - The Carpathian Connection Official Site of the Sanctuary of Máriapócs Official Site of the Hungarian Greek Catholic Church Our Lady of Mariapócs on "All About Mary" The University of Dayton's Marian