OUR LADY OF FORTUNE

Day 255: January 22

Our Lady of Fortune, Genoa, Italy



In some cases, the figureheads of ships are intended to indicate the name of the ship that housed it to people who could not read. For the sailor it is the very soul of the ship to which supernatural powers and a deep mystical meaning were attributed. The sailors, in fact, were convinced that the figurehead, stretched forward to protect the ship, would defend them from storms, natural disasters, fearsome sea currents and they themselves took care of it because they thought that, if this sculpture was damaged for any reason, it would bring bad luck to the whole crew. When it was realized that these figures risked jeopardizing the stability of the ship, the figureheads first became less elaborate and then almost disappeared completely.

Our story begins on January 17, 1636 when a storm raged in the sea of Genoa amid the inclement rigors of winter, which would end only the next day in front of the astonished gazes of the Genoese who contemplated the aftereffects of the shipwreck. And there, in the waters of the Darsena, the broken wood and the remains of ships that once braved the sea drift. In the midst of so much destruction, a statue floats on the water, it is the image of Mary, holding her Child in her arms. She holds the world between her fingers and she holds a rosary with her other hand.

Strangely enough, the statue was the only thing that turned out to have remained intact. It was necessary to bring the statue of Our Lady to the ground as soon as possible. It was done by a man from Levanto, a wine seller, known to all as the Son of the Blackbird, he will be the one to lead the Statue of Our Lady of Fortune to the shore. It was finally houled out on January 22nd.

Auctioned, it was purchased by two sailors who later deposited it in the premises of a warehouse that belonged to the Lomellini family, and there it was forgotten for many years.

One day, a little girl of about seven years old who lived on a high floor of that building, unfortunately fell from a window falling into the void but, miraculously, she remained unharmed. The little girl said that a beautiful lady dressed in blue had come out of the warehouse and held her in her arms preventing her from crashing to the ground and had lovingly placed her on the ground.

No one remembered the figurehead anymore, which was now covered with dust and cobwebs, so much so that its ancient shape was now unrecognizable. The people who rushed knelt in front of that stumped simulacrum recovered from the warehouse and thanked the one who from that moment on was considered a miraculous Lady.

Dusted, covered and completed of the missing part, the statue/figurehead was first taken to the medieval Church of San Vittore and then to the High Altar of the Church of San Carlo in Via Balbi, where it is said that it moved by itself to rest on the pedestal that had been prepared for it. In the place dedicated to her you will find paintings that narrate the circumstances that led her way there.

The title of Madonna della Fortuna (Our Lady of Fortune) can be traced back to good luck, or to the fact that she emerged unscathed from the destructive violence of a storm (wind from 103 to 117 km / hour, sea force ten with very high waves).

Let us also choose Our Lady as a figurehead so stretched forward, protecting the ship that is the Church and bringing us the true good fortune of having a Mother who is always caring for the salvation of her children and takes us away from shipwreck and towards the longed-for port of Paradise.


St Justin Russolillo Writes...

"With yourself, unite us to God the Father inloving you and Jesus, the Church and everyone, with the very love of the Father. Unite us with yourself to everyone and to the Church and to Jesus, in loving the Father, with the love of the Son."

(Justin Russolillo, Spirit of Prayer, trans. Louis Caputo, Vocationist Fathers, Newark, 1996, p. 154)

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