Poem of the Man-God

(Discovered whilst in Poustinia)

1897-1961

Maria Valtorta was born in 1897 in Caserta, Italy. In 1916 the lord attracted her to Himself by means of a dream which was to remain vivid throughout her life. In an evangelical vision, which seemed to anticipate the waking visions of her literary work, Jesus aided Maria with words of admonishment and piety.

In her early 20's and in the spring of 1920, while walking along the street, she was struck in the back by a young delinquent. With an iron bar stripped from a bed, he came from behind and struck her with all his might. She remained confined to bed for three months, just a sample of what was to be her future complete infirmity. January 4th, 1933 was the last day Maria was able to leave her house and after April 1, 1934, she was no longer able to leave her bed.

Her activity as writer reached intensity from 1943 to 1947, and continued, diminishing progressively, until 1953. The notebooks written by Maria included almost fifteen thousand pages. Little less than two-thirds of this outstanding literay production concerns the monumental work on the Life of Jesus (The Poem of the Man-God). The minor works include extensive commentaries on biblical texts, doctrinal lessons, histories of the first Christians and martyrs and pious compositions. "I can affirm" - one of Valtorta's declarations reads - "that I have had no human source to be able to know what I write, and what, even while writing, I often do not undersatand."

The Poem of the Man God (Italian title: Il Poema dell'Uomo-Dio) is a multi volume book of about four thousand pages on the life of Jesus Christ written by the Italian mystic Maria Valtorta. The latest editions of the book, bear the title: The Gospel As It Was Revealed to Me.

The book was first published in Italian in 1956 and has since been translated into 10 languages and is available worldwide. The book is based on over 15,000 handwritten pages produced by Maria Valtorta between 1943 and 1947. During these years she reported visions of Jesus and Mary and claimed personal conversations with Jesus.

The book has received the imprimatur and approval of some Catholic Bishops but the official position of the Holy See with respect to the book is currently less than clear. Since 1993 the Vatican has decided to remain silent on the work. Given the endorsements provided for the book in the visions of the Virgin Mary reported at Medjugorje in 1981, if and when the Holy See selects a position on Medjugorje, it may also be viewed as having selected a position on the work of Maria Valtorta.