Our Lady of La Salette

Our Lady of La Salette
Location La Salette-Fallavaux, France
Date 19 September 1846
Witness Mélanie Calvat
Maximin Giraud
Type Marian apparition
Holy See approval Pope Pius IX
Pope Leo XIII
Shrine Basilica of Our Lady of La Salette, La Salette, France
Patronage La Salette-Fallavaux, Silang, Cavite

Our Lady of La Salette (French: Notre-Dame de La Salette) is a Marian apparition reported by two children, Maximin Giraud and Mélanie Calvat [1] to have occurred at La Salette-Fallavaux, France, in 1846.

On 19 September 1851, Pope Pius IX formally approved the public devotion and prayers to Our Lady of La Salette, referring to its messages of apparition as "secrets". On 24 August 1852, Pope Pius IX once again mentioned the construction of the altar to La Salette. The same papal bull granted the foundation of the Association of Our Lady of La Salette, formalised on 7 September.

On 21 August 1879, Pope Leo XIII formally granted a Canonical Coronation to the image at the Basilica of Our Lady of La Salette. A Russian style tiara was granted to the image, instead of the solar-type tiara used in its traditional depictions of Virgin Mary during her apparitions.

There is also a sanctuary in Porto Metropolitan Area (Portugal), specifically in Oliveira de Azeméis, and a shrine in Attleboro, Massachusetts, known for its Christmas lights.

History

In 1846 the village of La Salette consisted of eight or nine scattered hamlets. The population was about 800, principally small farmers with their families and dependents. On the evening of Saturday, September 19, 1846, Maximin Giraud and Mélanie Calvat (called Mathieu[2]) returned from the mountain where they had been minding cows and reported seeing "a beautiful lady" on Mount Sous-Les Baisses, weeping bitterly. They described her as sitting with her elbows resting on her knees and her face buried in her hands. She was clothed in a white robe studded with pearls; and a gold colored apron; white shoes and roses about her feet and high head-dress. She wore a crucifix suspended by a necklace from her neck.

According to their account, she continued to weep even as she spoke to them, first in French, then in their own dialect[3] of Occitan.[4] After giving a secret to each child, the apparition walked a hill and vanished. The following day the children's account of the apparition was put into writing and signed by the visionaries and those who had heard the story.

According to the children's account, the Virgin invited people to respect the repose of the seventh day, and the name of God. She sorrowfully threatened punishment, in particular a scarcity of potatoes, which would rot. The context of these punishments places the warning just prior to the winter of 1846–1847, which was in Europe, and especially in Ireland and in France, a period of famine in the months which followed the apparition. This was one of the factors of the apparition's popular appeal.[1]

After five years of investigation, the bishop of Grenoble, Philibert de Bruillard announced in 1851 that the apparition was likely to be a true revelation and authorised the commencement of the cult of Our Lady of La Salette.[5] This determination was later confirmed by his successor, Bishop Ginoulhiac, in 1855.

Message

The message of the visionaries of La Salette focuses on the conversion of all humanity to Christ. Though La Salette's message is embedded in the bygone environment of the nineteenth century, rural France, it has had a tremendous impact on the modern world. John Vianney, John Bosco, and writer Joris-Karl Huysmans were all influenced by La Salette. The spirit of La Salette is said to be one of prayer, conversion, and commitment.[6]

Pope John Paul II stated: "As I wrote on the occasion of the 150th anniversary, 'La Salette is a message of hope, for our hope is nourished by the intercession of her who is the Mother of mankind."[7]

Inquiry

Sensation about Our Lady of La Salette arose when Mélanie and Maximin made their message public, which caused the bishop of Grenoble to investigate the apparition. During the investigation, a number of accusations were made against the visionaries, including the assertion that the apparition was actually just a middle-aged woman named Lamerliere.[2]

Secrets

No mention of secrets is made in the children's first accounts, presumably out of fear they would be compelled to disclose them. The children later reported that the Blessed Virgin had confided a special secret to each of them. These two secrets, which neither Mélanie or Maximin ever made known to each other, were sent by them in 1851 to Pope Pius IX on the advice of Mgr. de Bruillard.[2][8] It is assumed that these secrets were of a personal nature. Maximin advised the Marquise de Monteyard, "Ah, it is good fortune."[9]

Fate of the children

Maximin Giraud, after an unhappy and wandering life, returned to Corps, his native village, and died on 1 March 1875. Mélanie Calvat died at Altamura, Italy on 15 December 1904.[2]

Legacy

The Missionaries of Our Lady of La Salette were founded in 1852 by Bp. Philbert de Bruillard, Bishop of Grenoble, France, and presently serve in some 25 countries.[10] The National Shrine of Our Lady of La Salette is located in Attleboro, Massachusetts, USA; it is famous for its elaborate Christmas light displays.[11]

References

  1. 1 2 "Marian Apparitions". University of Dayton. Retrieved 2013-11-23.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Clugnet, Léon (1910). La Salette. The Catholic Encyclopedia. 9. New York: Robert Appleton Company. Retrieved 3 February 2014.
  3. ↑ Stern, Jean. 1980. La Salette, Documents authentiques. Part 1. Paris: Desclée De Brouwer, pp. 66, 71, [about the dialect itself] 279-280.
  4. ↑ Bert, Michael and James Costa. 2010. "Linguistic borders, language revitalisation and the imagining of new regional entities", Borders and Identities (Newcastle upon Tyne, 8-9 Jan. 2010), p. 18.
  5. ↑ "Notre-Dame de La Salette", Eymardian Places
  6. ↑ Castel, R. (1985). La Salette. Dictionary of Mary. New York: Catholic Book Publishing Company.
  7. ↑ "Address of the Holy Father John Paul II to the Missionaries of Our Lady of La Salette". Libreria Editrice Vaticana. 4 May 2000. Retrieved 2013-11-23.
  8. ↑ Bourmaud, Fr. Dominique (Jul–Dec 2003). "Discovery of the Secret of La Salette". Newsletter of District of Asia. Society of St. Pius X District of Asia. Retrieved 2013-11-23.
  9. ↑ Zimdars-Swartz, Sandra L., Encountering Mary: From La Salette to Medjugorje, Princeton University Press, 2014 ISBN 9781400861637
  10. ↑ "La Salette - A Universal Mission", Les Annales, Jan-Feb, 2011, pgs. 18-19
  11. ↑ National Shrine of Our Lady of La Salette
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