Saints celebrated on the 8th of May
OUR LADY OF POMPEII
Pompeii was a great and prosperous city in Roman times. It was destroyed by an eruption of Vesuvius. It was far from that in October, 1872, when Bartolo [Bartholomew] Longo was there to attend a property owned by his wife, the Countess of Fusco. The region was described in the official records as “a most dangerous resort of bold and infamous robbers.”
THE PICTURE FROM THE SECOND HAND STORE
Bartolo Longo had been raised and educated as a Catholic, but he had become involved with spiritualism. Weak as he was in his own faith, he was appalled by what he saw at Pompeii. There was only one little chapel and one parish priest for the entire region, yet this was sufficient for the few people who still went to church. Most of the inhabitants had fallen victim to superstition; fear of the evil eye was rampant.
“IF YOU SEEK SALVATION, PROMULGATE THE ROSARY”
On October 9, Bartolo was walking through one of the most desolate parts of the desolate region. His own doubts were assailing him again. Should he give up the faith in which he had been raised? Suddenly he became aware that a voice was speaking to him:
“If you seek salvation, promulgate the Rosary. This is Mary’s own promise.”
Bartolo answered: “If it is true that thou didst promise St Dominic that whosoever should promulgate the Rosary should be saved, then shall I be saved, for I will not leave this valley until I have propagated thy Rosary.”
THE ANGELUS RANG OUT FROM THE DISTANT CHURCH…
The Angelus rang out from the distant church, and Bartolo fell to his knees to confirm his pledge.
Bartolo’s attempts to found a Rosary confraternity met with little success at first, but by 1875 he had made a promising start. In that year the Bishop of Nola was won over. Visiting the little chapel, the Bishop said, “You wish to raise an altar here in honour of the Rosary? I propose we raise not an altar but a church!” Then pointing to a field opposite, he added, “That is where a basilica will be raised for Pompeii!”
PROMOTING THE DAILY RECITATION OF THE ROSARY
Bartolo wished to find a picture that would encourage the peasants in the daily recitation of the Rosary. He told the people that he would have a picture for them by the time they completed a three-day mission. He found a picture of our Lady of the Rosary which he liked, but he was very much disappointed when he learned that the picture did not meet the requirement of Canon Law. Bartolo hurried to Naples to secure another picture. He could find none that cost less than 400 francs, a price which he could not afford. What would he do? He had promised his people a picture.
HE HAD PROMISED HIS PEOPLE A PICTURE
A friend in Naples gave him a picture which he had bought in a secondhand shop for three francs. Bartolo looked at it with a sinking heart. It met the requirements of Canon Law all right, but it violated every aesthetic principle.
“Not only was it worm-eaten,” said Bartolo, “but the face of the Madonna was that of a coarse, rough country woman… a piece of canvas was missing just above her head… her mantle was cracked. Nothing can be said of the hideousness of the other figures. St Dominic looked like a street idiot. To our Lady’s left was a St Rose. This later I had changed into a St Catherine of Siena… I hesitated whether to refuse the gift or to accept. I had promised a picture unconditionally for that evening. I took it.”
I TOOK IT
The picture was too big for Bartolo to carry by hand, so he gave it to a delivery man who made regular trips between Pompeii and Naples. The picture, wrapped in a sheet, was carried to the chapel on top of a load of manure which was to be delivered to a nearby farm. Thus, Our Lady of Pompeii arrived at her chosen shrine. For this picture became the focal point of devotion at the chapel.
Bartolo bought the picture in November, 1875. In January, 1876, it was partially restored in time for the canonical foundation of the Confraternity.
MIRACULOUS CURES
- In Naples, meanwhile, Clorinda Lucarelli, a child of twelve, lay at the point of death. She was a victim of epilepsy and had been given up by the doctors. Clorinda’s aunt and guardian heard of the new Rosary Confraternity and promised to help in the building of a new church if the child got well. The girl was restored to complete health on the very day the picture was re-exposed for veneration. Doctors who had examined her previously said that her recovery was not due to any medical treatment.
- The relatives of Concetta Vasterilla, who was dying in agony, made a similar promise to Our Lady of Pompeii. She too recovered swiftly and completely.
- Father Anthony Varone was cured of a fearful gangrenous malady the same day he put his trust in Our Lady of Pompeii. All his symptoms vanished at once, and the next morning he rose to say Mass.
All of these cures took place in the early months of 1876.
The cornerstone of the new church was laid on May 8 of that year.
Exactly a month later, Madame Giovannina Muta, who lay in the last stages of consumption, appealed to our Lady of Pompeii. As she lay in bed she saw an exact replica of the picture in the chapel, although she had never seen the original. Our Lady gazed upon her and then threw towards her a kind of white ribbon on which was the message: “The Virgin of Pompeii grants your request, Giovannina Muta.” She was cured immediately.
The cures attributed to Our Lady of Pompeii could be extended indefinitely. There is one, however, that deserves special mention.
- Fortuna Agrelli, a girl from Naples, had been ill for thirteen months She suffered intense pain. Her father had called in the most celebrated doctors but they had declared her incurable. On February 16, 1884, she and some relatives began a novena of Rosaries. On March 3, our Lady appeared to Fortuna as the Virgin of Pompeii. She was sitting on a high throne, and the Infant Jesus was on her lap. She held a Rosary in her hand. She was accompanied by St Dominic and St Catherine of Siena. The throne was profusely decorated with flowers. The beauty of our Lady was marvellous. She looked at Fortuna with motherly tenderness. “Queen of the Holy Rosary,” Fortuna said, “be gracious to me; restore me to health. I have already prayed to thee in a novena, O Mary, but have not yet experienced the aid. I am so anxious to be cured!” – “Child,” said the Blessed Virgin, “thou hast invoked me by various titles and hast always obtained favours from me. Now, since thou hast called me by the title so pleasing to me, ‘Queen of the Holy Rosary,’ I can no longer refuse the favour thou dost petition; for this name is most precious and dear to me. Make three novenas, and thou shalt obtain all.” – Fortuna obeyed, and she was cured.
Soon after that, our Lady appeared again. This time she said, “Whosoever desires to obtain favours from me should make three novenas of the prayers of the Rosary in petition and three novenas in thanksgiving.”
THE IRRESISTIBLE NOVENA
This was the origin of the devotion of the Rosary Novenas to Our Lady, sometimes called the Irresistible Novena. The devotion calls for five decades of the Rosary each day for 27 days in petition to be followed by five decades a day for 27 days in thanksgiving – 54 days in all. It is a powerful form of prayer; we have our Lady’s word for it.
THE NEW CHURCH AT POMPEII
The new church at Pompeii was completed and then enlarged. In May, 1891, it was consecrated by Cardinal La Valetta, as Papal Legate for Pope Leo XIII. A large orphanage was built beside it and a hospice for pilgrims.
In 1906 Bartolo Long, who lived to see the marvellous results for the Confraternity he had originated, deeded his property at Pompeii to the Holy See. Under the Lateran Treaty of 1929, the church and surrounding property became directly subject to Vatican City State. In 1934, at the command of Pope Pius XI, a new basilica was begun on the spot that had been pointed out by the Bishop 59 years before. The basilica was completed in 1939.
A GREAT CONSOLATION
The picture from the secondhand store is today enshrined in a frame of gold and encrusted with diamonds and gems which hide all but the faces of our Lady, the saints and the Holy Child. Crowds pray before it each day, beseeching our Lady for her graces. Pilgrims were especially fervent in the trying days of World War II and during the troubled years that followed. Our Lady of Pompeii has been a great consolation to the Italians in their troubles.
Pompeii, like the other principal manifestations of our Lady since 1830, seems a forerunner of Fatima. The Rosary is the central devotion of Pompeii, and at Fatima the Blessed Mother came to ask us to “say the Rosary every day.”
The Rosary will be a powerful weapon in restoring the world to Christ.
(From: “The Woman Shall Conquer” by Don Sharkey, Prow Books/Franciscan Marytown Press, Libertyville, IL, 1954)
Comments
Post a Comment