The Mother of Jesus was appearing for tens of thousands to see in the land of the pyramids at a Coptic church constructed to commemorate the area in Egypt where she had come with Joseph and Jesus when they all fled from Herod. Starting in April, 1968, her apparitions of light changed the lives of thousands. Her appearances at Zeitun were astounding. She was seen by more than a million people. The apparitions were broadcast by Egyptian TV, photographed by hundreds of professional photographers and personally witnessed by Egyptian President Abdul Nasser. The apparitions lasted for three years with numerous unaccountable healings recorded by various medical professionals. The local police, who initially thought the apparitions were an elaborate hoax, searched a 15-mile radius surrounding the site to uncover any type of device that could be used to project such images. They were completely unsuccessful.

Today the cathedral of Zeitoun, a massive concrete bunker-like basilica, was built to commemorate the fact that 25 years ago, the Holy Mother herself honored this spot with her presence. To some it was a blinding light, unlike anything on earth. To others she was unmistakable, the Virgin Mary, walking as if in the flesh, on the roof of the small chapel across from where the basilica now stands, looking like the paintings and icons they revered.

Her first visit was on the night of April 2, 1968. Two Muslim watchmen at a garage saw a woman walking the roof of the church across the street. Afraid she was going to jump, they ran out shouting at her not to take her life, summoning a crowd below. The priest of the chapel was the first to believe it was an apparition. The longest single appearance was on April 30, 1968, when the vision remained from 2:45 a.m. until 5 a.m. The nightly apparition attracted vast crowds of both Copts and Muslims, and was declared a genuine miracle by the Coptic Church.

During the year when apparitions visited the small church on Tamambay Street in Zeitoun, thousands came, saw and believed.

For a year, the apparition appeared sporadically, never at the same time, accompanied by lights, doves, and stars. Miracles were reported.