Međugorje or Medjugorje is a town located in western Bosnia and Herzegovina, in the Herzegovina region around 25 km (16 mi) southwest of Mostar and close to the border of Croatia. The town is parto of the municipality of Čitluk. Since 1981, it has become a popular site of religious pilgrimage due to reports of apparitions of the Virgin Mary to six local Catholics.
The name Međugorje literally means “an area between mountains”. At an altitude of 200 m (660 ft) above sea level it has a mild Mediterranean climate. The town consists of an ethnically-homogeneous Croat population of over 4,000. The Roman Catholic parish (local administrative and religious area) consists of five neighbouring villages, Međugorje, Bijakovići, Vionica, Miletina and Šurmanci.
Following reports of apparitions, successive bishops of Mostar ruled the claims groundless. In March 2010, in view of continued public interest, the Holy See announced that the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith was forming an investigative commission, composed of bishops, theologians, and other experts, under the leadership of Cardinal Camillo Ruini, the Pope’s former Vicar General for the Diocese of Rome.
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