The Apparition at Savona, Italy:

“Mercy my son, not justice.” Our Lady of Mercy, Savona, Italy

The Apparition:

On 18th March 1536, Our Lady appeared to a peasant Antonio Botta as he was going to work in his vineyard. He described the Blessed Virgin Mary as being dressed in white and surrounded by a dazzling light. The vision stood on a large rock overlooking a stream near the river Letimbro. As he knelt before the vision, Our Lady asked him to go to his confessor and exhort the people to prayer and penance. She asked that three Saturdays of fasting be observed and that three processions be organised in honor of God and the Mother of Jesus.

Our Lady said “If it were not for the prayers and good works done by the Brothers, the world would be even worse than it is.” She then asked Antonio to return to the same place on the fourth Saturday to receive another message meant for the Curia and the people of Savona. Antonia immediately informed the local priest who then informed the Bishop of the diocese. Though the priest and the bishop were receptive to the vision and the message, the local Mayor refused to accept it and summoned Antonio to his castle for questioning him on the vision. It is believed that during Antonio’s interrogation, some fishermen off the coast of Savona saw three flames that rose high into the sky above the cathedral and the castle.

The second apparition took place on 8th April 1536 at the same place of the first vision. Our Lady stood with outstretched hands extending downward in a gesture of mercy. Once again Our Lady asked Antonio to observe three Saturdays of fasting and the processions. She exhorted Antonio and his fellowmen to follow the creed and said “Mercy my son, not justice.” This message quickly spread to all parts of Italy and later Europe. Soon a chapel was built at the site of the apparition and March 18 began to be observed as an annual festival with votive procession to the shrine.

Devotion:

It became a pilgrimage site and people began coming from all parts of Europe and later from around the world to pray to Our Lady of Mercy. Several miracles have been reported at the Shrine by pilgrims. Pope Pius VII was exiled to Savona on the order of Napoleon in the year 1809. During his years in Savona, he vowed that if he were released he would crown the statue of Our Lady of Mercy. On fulfilment of his intention, in 1815 the Pope honoured his word by placing a royal diadem on the statue of Our Lady of Mercy on May 10, 1815. In recent years, Pope Benedict XVI visited the Shrine on May 17, 2008 and gave the Golden Rose, a sign of special distinction offered to Marian Shrines.