Savona: supernatural origin of the devotion to Our Lady of Mercy

On Saturdays 18 March and 8 April 1536, Antonio Botta, an elderly farmer from Savona, saw the Virgin Mary near a stream. The apparition called the local faithful to conversion, penance and mercy. The bishop of Savona authorised public worship the following year. The place of the apparitions became an important shrine that continues to attract countless pilgrims. As a sign of support, Pope Pius VII crowned the statue of Our Lady of Mercy, and in 2008, the Savona shrine was proclaimed a national shrine of the confraternities of Italy. In the same year, Pope Benedict XVI presented Our Lady with a "golden rose", a very special gift to Mary from popes to certain Marian shrines.

The façade of the sanctuary of Our Lady of Mercy near Savona / © Shutterstock, Fabio Lotti.

Les raisons d'y croire :

Antonio "Tonio" Botta's official deposition has been preserved since 1596 in the sanctuary of Our Lady of Mercy, and is also engraved on a marble slab.

Tonio Botta, the visionary, was a simple, pious and charitable man, whom everyone appreciated for his honesty. There is no evidence to suggest that he was, on two occasions, the victim of an illusion or hallucination.

One criterion that supports the truth of an apparition is its capacity to convert souls, and to direct the faithful towards Jesus. The word "mercy" uttered by the Virgin essentially expresses Christ's love for mankind - an absolute certainty of faith, always taught by the Church. The apparition's invitations to prayer, penance, conversion and religious practice are in total harmony with both the Gospel and the teaching of the Church.

In 1536, the first miracle occurred after the apparitions: while Antonio was being questioned by a skeptical and unpleasant public official, several fishermen a few dozen metres from the shore saw "three flames high in the sky" above the Savona Cathedral and the residence where the visionary was being held. When they reported this event, they were unaware that Antonio was being questioned at precisely the same place and at the same time.

In 1537, Cardinal Agostino Spinola, papal camerlengo and papal administrator of Savona, endorsed the positive opinions of the diocesan clergy and authorised public devotion to Our Lady of Mercy. This decision was not taken lightly; it followed a critical investigation of the visionary's testimony and probity.

Work on the sanctuary church, carried out on the very site of the apparitions, was completed in 1540, just four years after the apparitions. The speed of construction and the large capacity of the church both reflect the enthusiasm and faith of the people of the region for the apparitions and the message of Our Lady.

In 1645, a new prodigy revived the devotion to Our Lady of Mercy: two men who were having a violent argument heard "a mysterious voice" coming from the statue of the apparition, ordering them to calm down and to reconcile. The two parties obeyed and quit their quarrel.

For this reason, when an epidemic of plague struck the Republic of Genoa and Corsica that same year, clergy and laity alike turned to Our Lady of Mercy. After a few days, the incurable disease subsided. Statues of the Virgin were then placed in several churches in the region to thank Mary for her intervention, proving that the causal link between praying to Our Lady and the decline in the plague was obvious to the inhabitants of the region at the time. Fifteen years later, the bishop of Ajaccio, Joannes Gregorius Ardizzone, referred to the Virgin of the apparition as the "protectress and patroness of the town".

Every 18 March, a diocesan festival with a procession commemorates the apparitions and the many wonders and protections of Our Lady of Mercy in Savona.

Thanks to the upright charater of the protagonists, the rigorous investigations, the durability of the pilgrimage, the constant encouragement of the diocesan authorities and the number of miracles recorded in the region since the 16th century, the Marian apparitions of 1536 represent a significant spiritual event in this part of the Mediterranean world.

Synthèse :

On Saturday 18 March 1536, Antonio Botta, a native of San Bernardo, near Savona (Italy, Liguria), was working in his vineyard as usual. It was a hot day and he went to a stream to cool off. There, suddenly, he saw a great light descend from the sky and land on a rock overlooking the stream. The good man had never seen anything like it. The light soon gave way to a female silhouette whose features became clearer as the light faded. It was the Virgin Mary, "crowned with gold " and "dressed in white" who now stood on a rock overlooking the waters of the local torrent.

The Queen of Angels was of unimaginable beauty. Antonio knelt down, but he didn't have time to say anything before the apparition spoke these words, eyes raised to heaven, hands outstretched: "Get up and do not doubt that I am the Virgin Mary. Go to your confessor and tell him that you are announcing to the Church and the people that they should fast forthree Saturdays and come inprocession in honour of God and his Mother. They should then confess and communicate. On the fourth Saturday, you will return to this place."

In the meantime, Antonio heard muleteers going down the path; panicking, he tried to hide. Mary told him: "Don't move! They won't be able to see either of us!" Then she disappeared.

Antonio ran to inform the Franciscan parish priest of San Bernardo in Valle, who in turn informed Monsignor Bartolomeo Chiabrera, Cardinal Agostino Spinola's vicar general in the diocese of Savona, who had no reservations about the phenomenon. In the weeks that followed, Franciscan preachers spoke publicly in favor of the apparition of 18 March.

Only some representatives of the civil authorities expressed doubts. This was the case in particular of Baldassarre Doria, Regent of Savona on behalf of the Genoese Republic, who feared an uprising of the inhabitants against Genoa. He summoned Antonio, to question him for hours about the events. During this exchange, fishermen off the coast of Savona saw "three flames high in the sky" above the cathedral and Doria's residence.

On the following April 8, the eve of Palm Sunday, Antonio, faithful to Mary's call, went to the place of the apparition. The miracle happened again: first, a magnificent light appeared on a large rock by the stream, and then Our Lady, with her hands clasped, appeared, very beautiful and majestic. She wore a golden crown identical to the one she wore the first time. After a moment, she said: "You will go to those in Savona who have asked for an explanation of my first message, and you will say that you are announcing to the people that they are to fast for three Saturdays and that all the religious and penitential orders are to go in procession for three days. And in general let it be announced to all people to redeem themselves from their iniquities, and to leave vices and sins, because my Son is very angry with the world for the great iniquities that reign there at the present time." Then Our Lady raised her eyes and hands three times to heaven and said these words: "Mercy, my Son, not justice!"

Antonio cannot say how long the apparition lasted. But he did know one thing: it was really the Mother of God who had come to him to entrust him with a mission that the Catholic Church would soon authenticate.

The announcement of this new apparition was greeted with great joy throughout the Republic of Genoa. Knowing the trustworthiness and mental balance of the visionary, and his inability to lie, the clergy accepted the message of Our Lady of Mercy and her messenger.

In 1645, a new prodigy revived interest in the apparition. A sailor named Orto, who had a great devotion to the Virgin, planned to install a statue of Our Lady of Mercy above the entrance gate to his house. One day, however, the man was confronted by local residents, who didn't like the idea of this project near their home. Tempers flared and they were on the verge of coming to blows when an order came from inside the statue, telling everyone to calm down and make peace. Frightened, the heated dispute stopped immediately. The origin of the firm, calm voice, had obviously not come from anyone present. The pious Orto then ordered a new statue, more beautiful than the previous one.

At that time, a plague epidemic was sweeping through the Republic of Genoa and as far as Corsica. Clergy and laity alike turned to Our Lady and, after a few days, the incurable disease subsided. To thank Mary for her intervention, statues of Our Lady of Mercy were placed in several churches in the region, including the parish of Saint-Ignatius in Ajaccio, and many others.

On 18 March 1660, Bishop Joannes Gregorius Ardizzone of Ajaccio, declared Our Lady of Mercy to be the patron saint and protectress of the town. From then on, the church of Saint Ignatius became a Marian shrine, attracting numerous pilgrims every year from Corsica, Liguria and beyond.

In 1752, the statue was moved to Ajaccio cathedral, and a solemn feast with a procession was established in honour of Our Lady of Mercy. This was the triumph of the devotion and the starting point of a centuries-old pilgrimage.

In 1813, Pope Pius VII, held prisoner in Savona by Napoleon I, crowned the statue of Our Lady with the help of many priests and lay people. After him came Benedict XVI, on 17 May 2008, to present Our Lady with a "golden rose", a sign of the universal Church's love and gratitude for Mary. The popularity of the Savona pilgrimage has never waned since the first half of the 16th century.

Patrick Sbalchiero

Aller plus loin :

Patrick Sbalchiero, "Savona I and II (Italy, Liguria)", in René Laurentin and Patrick Sbalchiero, Dictionnaire des "apparitions" de la Vierge Marie, Paris, Fayard, 2007, p. 865-866.

En savoir plus :

Article about Our Lady of Mercy of Savona containing pictures.
I.M. Zocca, Apparizione della Madonna Santissima di Misericordia di Savona, Modena, 1632.
Giacomo Picconi, Storia dell'apparizione e de Miracoli di Nostra Signora di Misericordia Di Savona, Genoa, 1760.
Mgr L. Cristiani, "Marie, Reine de la Corse", in Maria, t. 4, Paris, Beauchesne, 1956, p. 212-213.
C. Turchini-Zuccarelli, Les Merveilleuses apparitions de Notre Dame, Nouvelles Éditions Latines, 1977.
Domenico Marcuzzi, Santuari mariani d'Italia, Roma, Edizioni Paoloni, 1982, p. 52.
The article in the Marian Encyclopaedia (on the Mary of Nazareth website): " Savona: Nostra Signora della misericordia ".