The pilgrimage of the Unitalsi subsections of Como and Sondrio to the sanctuary of the Madonna del Fonte di Caravaggio (Bg) will take place on Saturday 4 May. There will be around 200 participants from the diocese of Como: they will be joined by around fifty Unitalians from the Church of Mantua. The pilgrims will converge from different points and upon arrival in Caravaggio, at the Spirituality Center, they will have the opportunity to approach the sacrament of reconciliation. All the pilgrims are expected to meet at 10.30am who will enter the Sanctuary of the Madonna del Fonte in procession. At 11.00 the bishop of Como, Cardinal Oscar Cantoni, will preside over the Holy Mass. After lunch, scheduled for 12.30pm, the meeting in the Sanctuary is scheduled for 2.15pm, the passage to the Source, the procession outside and the blessing with the Blessed Sacrament. At 4.30 pm the pilgrims will return home.
For a year the Sanctuary of the Madonna del Fonte di Caravaggio has been a regional sanctuary. The church stands on the place where the Virgin Mary appeared to Giannetta Varoli on 26 May 1432, “at five in the evening”, the documents say. Since then, an uninterrupted influx of faithful and sick has marked the centuries-old history of the Sanctuary of S. Maria del Fonte in Caravaggio. Where the Madonna had appeared, a source of water gushed out, continuously drawn from then on, a sign of the abundance of divine grace and the maternal intercession of the mother of the Lord. The imposing Basilica with the majestic avenue that leads to it, the large squares and porticoes offer pilgrims the ideal place for a pause for prayer, the celebration of reconciliation and penance, the invocation of internal and physical healing, the festive gratitude for the thanks received. Giannetta, a 32 year old woman who was working in the fields, that evening of May 26th, this is the story of the Apparition, «saw a beautiful and admirable Lady coming from above and standing right next to her, of majestic stature, graceful face, venerable appearance and unspeakable and never imagined beauty, dressed in a blue dress and her head covered with a white veil. Struck by the noble Lady’s venerable appearance, astonished Giannetta exclaimed: Virgin Mary! And the Lady immediately addressed her: Fear not, daughter, for it is truly me. Stop and kneel in prayer». For further information: here is the site of the Caravaggio sanctuary.
