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OUR LADY OF LIGHT

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Day 280: February 16 Our Lady of Light of Ugento, Lecca, Salento, Puglia, Italy This sanctuary stands on an ancient Marian chapel, destroyed during the Saracen raids in 1537. It is here that a blind priest, Don Didaco di Vittorio di Afragola, on pilgrimage to the sanctuary of Our Lady of Leuca in 1563, stopped to seek shelter during a storm. Here, praying to Mary Most Holy, he regained his sight, first of all seeing a Byzantine fresco of the Madonna, discovered by chance by his dog who brought out a part of it with its paws. The slab is certainly from the Byzantine period and there are good reasons to think that it was buried to protect it from iconoclasts. The Bishop of the time, Monsignor Antonio Minturno, had the image, that is still venerated, in the church preserved, calling it Our Lady of Light. The current building was rebuilt in 1576 by Bishop Desiderio Mezzapica. The façade, bordered by two powerful corner pilasters, is decorated with an entrance portal in Lecce stone from 158...
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OUR LADY OF COMFORT

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Day 279: February 15 Our Lady of Comfort, Arezzo, Tuscany, Italy In the second half of the 1700's there were numerous earthquakes almost everywhere: in Spain, Persia and even in Italy. On June 3, 1781, a tremendous earthquake devastated several towns in the Marche, Umbria, Romagna and Tuscany, causing hundreds of victims; in 1783 another earthquake struck Messina. It is therefore explainable the atmosphere of fear and terror that was created in Arezzo and throughout Tuscany, when on February 1, 1796, in full euphoria for the carnival, the first tremors were felt that were repeated insistently, although with different intensity, in the following days: from February 1st to 10th over 30 tremors were recorded. In addition, according to Abbot Angelucci's report, other telluric and terrestrial phenomena occurred: frightening rumbles, flashes of fire in the night, threatening clouds, turbidity of the waters of the Arno. All these portended serious disasters and created a tormenting st...
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OUR LADY OF PELLEVOISIN

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Day 278: February 14 Our Lady of Pellevoison, France In 1875 Estelle, due to her serious health conditions, had a letter deposited in the grotto of Lourdes, in which she implored:  "Implore me from your divine Son, for His glory, the salvation of this body of mine. You see the pain of my parents, and you know that they only have me as support. They are on the verge of having to beg for a morsel of bread, and I cannot think of it without being deeply grieved by it. Give me back my health, if it so pleases: but His will be done, and not mine. Grant me at least full resignation to your plans, and let everything serve for my salvation and that of my parents." When she wrote that letter, Estelle was 32 years old and was now considered to be dying due to the consequences of serious diseases that had struck her over a period of thirteen years: gangrenous smallpox, acute peritonitis, pulmonary tuberculosis and a tumor in her left side. On February 14, 1876, the woman was and read, in...
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QUEEN OF THE APOSTLES

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Day 277: February 13 Queen of Apostles, Basilica of St Apollinare, Rome, Italy According to an ancient tradition, St. Apollinaris was the first Bishop of Ravenna, consecrated and sent to evangelize that region directly from St Peter. The first church built in his honor in Rome was completed between the middle of the seventh and the beginning of the eighth century, that is, in full Byzantine domination. Probably, the first religious who occupied the church were Basilian monks, who took refuge in Rome because of iconoclastic persecutions: it would be up to them to transfer some martyrs to the basement of the primitive Church. From 1284, however, it is the first evidence of a college of canons that lasted until 1576. The Basilica became a parish in 1562 and remained so until 1824. From 1574 until 1773 it was linked to the Germanic College (later Germanic-Hungarian College) which had as its seat the current University Palace. The original Basilica was demolished and rebuilt on the initiati...
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OUR LADY OF GROUCHIY

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Day 276: February 12 Our Lady of Grouchiv , Ukraine The story of Grouchiv ( Hrushiv or Grushew ) and its apparitions or events concerning the Blessed Virgin originates long before 1970, in fact it begins in the seventeenth century, when the Blessed Mother appeared for the first time, in the lower part of the village. The people, to commemorate the event, planted a willow tree in that place. A century later, a spring gushed out at the foot of the willow tree and people came to collect water. Many healings took place that made the sanctuary famous. In 1806, Stepan Chapowsky painted an image of Our Lady there. The villagers fixed it on the willow tree and the pilgrimages to that place intensified, so much so that the owner of the land, annoyed by the fact that the pilgrims were stepping on it, decided to call an unbeliever, J. Kina, to build a barrier around the willow. In 1856 a cholera epidemic broke out. A woman then saw the Mother of God in a dream  "My daughter, please clean ...
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OUR LADY OF LOURDES

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Day 275: February 11 Our Lady of Lourdes, France In 1858, there lived in the village of Lourdes, a small peasant woman, Bernadette Soubirous, 14 years old, ignorant, simple, poor and good. On February 11, she was sent with two other girls to collect wood. They went to the Rock of Massabielle , where the two companions crossed a mountain stream; while Bernadette was taking off her shoes to follow them, she realized a beautiful, enchanting Lady, standing in the hollow of the rock, looking at her. Bernadette fell involuntarily on her knees, looking enchanted at the beautiful Lady, who smiled lovingly at Bernadette and then disappeared. The mysterious Lady of Heaven appeared in all, eighteen times to the little girl and among other things told her to drink water from a mysterious fountain that had not yet been discovered. Bernadette scratched the sand at a point indicated, and the water began to flow through the earth; After a few days, 27,000 gallons of pure, clear spring water was pourin...
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OUR LADY OF GIBILMANNA

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Day 274: February 10 Our Lady of Gibilmanna, Cefal ù , Palermo, Italy The sanctuary stands in the middle of oak and chestnut woods, at 800 metres above sea level. The name itself indicates its position (Gebel, mountain) associated with the now disappeared production of manna. The image of Our Lady of oriental origin was venerated in an ancient monastery founded by St Gregory the Great. Feast of Our Lady of Gibilmanna , patron saint of the diocese of Cefalù (PA), is on the first Sunday of September. The celebrations take place at the beautiful Sanctuary of Gibilmanna , attracting pilgrims and devotees from all over the world. In this Sanctuary the Crucifix spoke to a monk saying, "Here my mother reigns... turn to her for graces." Inside the Sanctuary is kept the image of the Madonna under which a lamp burns incessantly. Every year, the oil that feeds the lamp is offered to Our Lady by one of the various municipalities of the Diocese. During the feast days, crowds of pilgrims ...
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