Name of the book: “The light returned”
Author: Riad Naguib Azer

Subject of the Book

This book is a true story in which the author narrates the events of losing vision in one of his eyes and how he miraculously recovered after seeing the Virgin Mary during her apparition above her church in Zeitoun on April, 23, 1968.

The story begins on Tuesday, February 13, 1968, when the Mr. Riad Naguib Azer, a final-year student at the Faculty of Commerce, suddenly experienced a health catastrophy

The author, in an engaging literary style, describes the feelings of sadness and despair he went through after losing sight in one of his eyes. He recounts his admission to one of Alexandria’s hospitals, then his transfer to the Alexandria University Students’ Hospital. During the Easter period in 1968, the hospital administration allowed him to leave for two days to spend Easter with his family in Damanhour. However, he insisted on visiting the Church of the Virgin Mary in Zeitoun (despite his family’s refusal) and indeed traveled to Cairo on May 22, 1968. He spent the night awake among the crowds waiting for the apparition of the Virgin outside the church. Riyad explains in the book how he regained sight in his right eye the moment light burst from the church’s dome, and then saw a pillar of light next to his bed in the hospital the following night. Afterward, doctors confirmed that he restored vision in his right eye.

The Three Medical Committees

Riad Azer was examined by three high-level medical committees (medical commissions):

The first was on April 10, and it concluded that there was no treatment that could restore vision to his right eye.
The second was on April 25, 1968 — just two days after the miracle — and it included ophthalmology professors from the Alexandria Faculty of Medicine, based on the recommendation of Dr. Nabawi El-Mohandes, Minister of Health at the time. This committee decided that Riad is no longer requiring any treatment in Egypt or abroad, but requested that he remain in the hospital for a few days to ensure complete recovery.
The third was on May 7, 1968, after the hospital administration became overwhelmed with the large number of visitors coming to congratulate him on restoring vision in his right eye, as well as the many Egyptian and foreign journalists and photographers who were pursuing the doctors to cover the miraculous event. This committee declared that he had fully recovered and could be discharged from the hospital.

Credibility of the Book

The book was published shortly after the miracle (August 1970) and includes accurate details and the names of many individuals, with no one disputing its contents.
It is supported by documents proving the author’s loss of vision in his right eye and his admission to multiple hospitals without any successful treatment.
Riad was examined by specialized professors and presented before several top-level medical committees. The book includes the reports from those committees.
The author precisely names key figures involved in his treatment attempts, such as President Gamal Abdel Nasser, Health Minister Dr. Nabawi El-Mohandes, and his lifelong Muslim friend Fikry El-Sayed Metwally. He also specifies the timeline of his illness, the dates of the medical committees, and the names of the doctors who examined him — all of which provide scientific value and credibility to the book.
The book contains medical documents confirming the truth of the miracle and authenticity.
It also includes a list of newspapers and news agencies that reported the miracle and the dates of their publications:

Watani newspaper, issue dated May 5, 1968.
Al-Ahram newspaper, May 6, 1968
Al-Bayraq (Lebanese newspaper), May 7, 1968.
Akhbar El-Youm, May 8, 1968.
Al-Gomhuria, May 10, 1968.

Additionally, Egyptian Radio recorded the miracle with Riyad and broadcast it on the general program of the United Arab Republic Radio in a special program about the apparition of the Virgin Mary in Zeitoun.

Finally, the book was introduced by two prominent bishops known for their precision and integrity: the late Bishop Gregorios, General Bishop for Higher Studies, Coptic Culture, and Scientific Research, and the late Bishop Shenouda, Bishop of Church Education and the Coptic Theological Seminary — who was later enthroned as Pope Shenouda III, Patriarch of the Coptic Orthodox Church.