Sanctuary of the Apparitions
 | This article may require copy editing for grammar, style, cohesion, tone, or spelling. (October 2022) |
| Apparitions Sanctuary | |
|---|---|
| Sanctuary of the Immaculate Heart of Mary | |
Santuario de las Apariciones | |
 Facade of the sanctuary | |
 | |
| 42°26′02.2″N 8°38′47.4″W / 42.433944°N 8.646500°W | |
| Location | Pontevedra, Spain |
| Country | Spain |
| Denomination | Catholicism |
| Website | www |
| History | |
| Dedication | Marian apparition in Pontevedra, Spain. |
| Consecrated | 1920 |
| Administration | |
| Diocese | Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Santiago de Compostela |
The Sanctuary of the Apparitions (Santuario das Aparicións in Galician and Santuario de las Apariciones in Spanish) is located in Pontevedra, Spain. According to Sister Lúcia, it was here that the Child Jesus and the Virgin appeared to her in 1925 and 1926 and, with her heart surrounded by thorns, revealed to her the first five Saturdays devotion.[1]
It is the third most visited Marian pilgrimage destination in the world, with over 12 million visits recorded up to 2022.[2]
Location
The sanctuary is located at 3 Sor Lucía Street, in the historic centre of Pontevedra.
History
On the site where the sanctuary is located, there was a building from the early Middle Ages, of which traces of stonemasonry and a walled door with decorative reliefs have been preserved.[3][4]
The building was constructed in the mid-16th century.[5] In the 19th century, the building was the palace of the Arias Teijeiro family (Antonio and José, father and son), the latter being a Carlist politician and universal minister.[3][6]
In the early 1920s, the Marquis of Riestra rented it to the Dorothean sisters.[5]
In 1925, Sister Lúcia, one of the three visionaries of Fatima, became a Dorothean sister in Galicia. While in her room in this convent in Pontevedra two months after her arrival, on 10 December 1925, Sister Lucia had a vision of the Child Jesus and the Virgin Mary with her heart surrounded by thorns. The second apparition of the Child Jesus took place on 15 February 1926 in the convent garden.[7] In 1927, Sister Lucia wrote that Our Lady, in the apparition of 1925, had explained to her what communion on First Saturdays consisted of.[3][8]
The Holy Communion of the First Saturdays consists in going to confession, receiving Holy Communion every first Saturday of the month for five months (in reparation for five types of blasphemy), praying the rosary and meditating on its mysteries.[9][10][11]
Pope John Paul II granted it the status of a sanctuary in 2000 on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the apparitions.[12]
The building was renovated in 2022, with the refurbishment of the second floor and a new roof.[13]
The sanctuary is known as the "Spanish Fátima".[13]
Description
The religious building, also known as the House of Apparitions, has two floors. The façade is made of stone and is in a simple style. On the ground floor, the stone base and the semicircular arches supported by Tuscan half-columns that frame the door and windows are noteworthy.
Inside, there is a main chapel (on the ground floor) and a small chapel where the Child Jesus and the Virgin Mary appeared to sister Lúcia, the visionary of Fátima. There is also a walled doorway with an ogee arch from the 16th century.[4] On the first floor are the rooms of the convent's hostel, which has 60 beds in different rooms with up to four beds, and which the Bishops' Conference is going to turn into a pilgrims' hostel.[2] On the second floor is the cell where, according to Christian belief, the Virgin Mary appeared to Sister Lúcia on 10 December 1925.[13]
The building also has an interior garden where the Child Jesus appeared to Sister Lúcia on 15 February 1926. The medieval cloister, dating from the end of the 15th century, has semicircular arches supported by Tuscan columns.[4]
Gallery
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Main chapel -
Chapel where Sister Lúcia's room was -
Facade in 2021, Sor Lucía Street -
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References
- ^ Milagros Bará (16 July 2015). "El Santuario de las apariciones". Diario de Pontevedra (in Spanish).
- ^ a b José Estévez (9 June 2022). "El Santuario de las Apariciones inicia su primera fase de rehabilitación". Diario de Pontevedra (in Spanish).
- ^ a b c José Benito García Iglesias (13 October 2017). "El Santuario de las Apariciones". Pontevedra Viva (in Spanish).
- ^ a b c Rafael Fontoira Surís (2009). Pontevedra Monumental (in Galician). Pontevedra: Deputación de Pontevedra. p. 157. ISBN 978-84-8457-327-2.
- ^ a b "Una casa que las monjas doroteas alquilaron al marqués de Riestra". La Voz de Galicia (in Spanish). 19 February 2005.
- ^ Riveiro Tobío 2008, p. 27
- ^ Santiago Tedeschi Prades (15 February 2022). "El Santuario de las Apariciones en Pontevedra en estado ruinoso: conoce su historia y ayuda a salvarlo". Cadena COPE (in Spanish).
- ^ "La devoción al Inmaculado Corazón de María: sor Lucía, vidente de Fátima, explica por qué urge" (in Spanish). Religión en libertad. 22 December 2017.
- ^ Aganzo 2010, p. 79
- ^ "La devoción de los Cinco Primeros Sábados" (in Spanish). Catholic.net. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
- ^ Javier Martínez Brocal (16 March 2022). "El Papa consagrará Rusia para evitar una catástrofe, como pidió la Virgen de Fátima en las apariciones". ABC (newspaper) (in Spanish).
- ^ Salvador Rodríguez (8 September 2019). "El mensaje de Fátima que llegó a Galicia". Faro (in Spanish).
- ^ a b c José Estévez (9 October 2022). "El Santuario de las Apariciones prevé su reapertura en el plazo máximo de dos semanas". Diario de Pontevedra (in Spanish).
Bibliography
- Aganzo, Carlos (2010). Pontevedra. Ciudades con encanto (in Spanish). Madrid: El País-Aguilar. p. 79. ISBN 978-8403509344.
- Fontoira Surís, Rafael (2009). Pontevedra monumental (in Galician). Pontevedra: Diputación Provincial de Pontevedra. p. 157. ISBN 978-84-8457-327-2.
- Riveiro Tobío, Elvira (2008). Descubrir Pontevedra (in Spanish). Pontevedra: Edicións do Cumio. p. 27. ISBN 9788482890852.
See also
Related articles
External links
