Locutions

Locutions are inner experiences of hearing a divine voice or receiving revelation. The broader category is theophany or epiphany, which means any revelation or manifestation to humans by God or the divine or their agents such as angels. Visions, or apparitions, are epiphanies which are primarily visual, while locutions are the auditory aspect of contact with or from an external transcendent source. The experience can range from very realistic dialog with an angel (including an apparition) to a subtle and sudden feeling of inspiration coming in linguistic form. It is not uncommon for these visitations to be accompanied by other sorts of miracles, such as healing. St. Teresa of Avila is one of the classic examples of a mystic whose experience included locutions. Bernadette Soubirous (1844–1879) was a young French woman who also received locutions attributed to Our Lady of Lourdes. The Virgin Mary in both Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and Anglican traditions is a frequent source of...