The Vatican is providing its long-awaited assessment on one of the more contested aspects of Roman Catholicism in recent years: the reported “apparitions” of the Virgin Mary at an otherwise unremarkable village in southern Bosnia.

More than 40 million pilgrims from around the world have flocked to the small village named Medjugorje since 1981.

The Holy See has authorized the faithful to “prudently adhere” to the presumed messages of the Virgin at Medjugorje. From now on, these messages will be reviewed by a papal delegate before publication.

After 40 years of studies, commissions and contradictions, the Vatican finally approved the spiritual devotion of the faithful at the Marian site at Medjugorje, in Bosnia-Herzegovina, in a document issued on Thursday.

Since the alleged visions, Medjugorje has evolved into a significant pilgrimage destination, attracting over a million visitors each year to the town, which has a population of just over 2,000.

In June 1981, six children aged 10 to 16 claimed that the Virgin Mary appeared to them on a hilltop near the town.

Pope Francis has expressed some doubts on the messages, commenting in 2013 on the Virgin Mary’s particularly chatty nature at Medjugorje.