Our Lady of Siluva:
"Lithuania's Greatest Treasure"
First Widely Known Apparition
of the Mother of God in
Europe
In 1251, Lithuania was the
last European nation to accept Christianity, becoming the youngest
daughter of the Church. There was a time when Lithuania came
very close to leaving the Catholic faith. Something happened
in 1608 in the little village of Siluva which turned back, once
and for all, the tide of the Reformation heresy which was sweeping
over Europe and threatening to engulf this little country. Two
hundred fifty years before Lourdes and Fatima the Blessed Virgin
Mary appeared in the village of Siluva, Lithuania.
The story begins in
1457
The story of Our Lady of Siluva actually began in 1457, when
Peter Giedgaudas, a diplomat for Vytautas the Great, built the
first church in the area and gave the land to the Catholic Church.
On one of his many travels he went to Rome and there obtained
a magnificent painting of the Blessed Virgin Mary holding the
child Jesus. He brought the painting back to Lithuania and put
it in the sanctuary of the new church in Siluva. For several
generations the faithful worshiped God and honored the Blessed
Mother in their little shrine church.
Calvinist controversy
When the Protestant Reformation swept over Europe, not even this
little village escaped its impact. In 1532, the local governor
became a zealous Calvinist as did many nobility and intellectuals.
They in turn forced their will upon the people. The Catholics
of Siluva were helpless to resist the repression of their Faith
by the powerful gentry. Property owned by the Church was to be
confiscated and the land turned over to the Calvinists.
Parish priest hides the
treasured painting
When Fr. John Holubka, the parish priest of the Siluva Church,
heard what was to happen, he built an ironclad box. He carefully
wrapped the treasured painting of the Blessed Virgin Mary and
Child, liturgical vestments, and documents which proved that
Vytautas the Great had given the land to the Catholic Church
and placed them in the box. Then he sealed the box and buried
it deep in the ground near a large rock. His action was truly
inspired because a short time later the authorities seized the
church. It seemed as if the Catholic faith had come to an end
in the once fervent village of Siluva.
God miraculously intervenes
Eighty years passed and the Catholic flock, with no shepherd
to guide and nourish it, gradually died out. Only a few of the
very oldest villagers dimly remembered that there had been a
Catholic Church in their village. Children were reared in the
Calvinist creed. Suddenly, through an apparition of the Blessed
Virgin Mary, God miraculously intervened. This apparition has
been proven an actual event, authenticated by a Papal Decree
issued by Pope Pius VI on August 17, 1775. The most remarkable
feature is the fact that the miracle took place in a completely
un-Catholic atmosphere.
Children see a beautiful
woman on a rock
One summer day, in 1608, a number of children were tending their
sheep in a field on the outskirts of the village of Siluva. They
were playing near a large rock, close to a wooded section of
the field, shouting merrily to one another in carefree fun. Suddenly
one after another stood transfixed, staring in the direction
of the rock. In the silence, there could be heard the sound of
loud sobbing. Then the children beheld a beautiful young woman
standing on the rock holding a baby in her arms and weeping bitterly.
Her overwhelming grief was only too evident. She did not speak,
but looked at them sadly as she stood there, weeping as though
her heart was breaking. So profuse were her tears that they ran
down her cheeks and some of them splashed on the rock. The woman
was dressed in flowing blue and white robes, unlike any costume
with which the children were familiar. Her long, light-brown
hair fell softly over her shoulders. A strange light surrounded
both the woman and child.
Boy runs to Calvinist
pastor
So startled were the children, they could not speak, but merely
stood and stared. Amazement soon turned to fright when the woman
with her baby disappeared as mysteriously as she had appeared.
Then all began to talk excitedly about what they had seen. One
of the boys ran to the village to tell the Calvinist pastor.
He was told to stop making up such a fantastic tale and to go
back to the fields.
Children tell their parents
When the children returned home in the evening, they told their
parents and neighbors about the weeping woman. The news spread
quickly through the little village, and the next morning most
of the townspeople had gathered around the rock. Some were scoffing
loudly, but others were impressed by the children's tearful insistence
that they were telling the truth. This was proven because, whether
the children were questioned separately or together, each told
the same identical story, even to the smallest detail.
The Blessed Virgin reappears
The Calvinist pastor, aware of the crowd that had gathered, became
alarmed at the gullibility of his people in believing this "Roman
superstition," as he labeled the story. He warned them that
this was the work of Satan, who wanted to lead them away. As
the Calvinist pastor paused to catch his breath, a heart-rending
sound of sobbing was heard. All eyes turned to the rock, and
there, standing in their midst, was the weeping lady with the
baby in her arms, just as the children had described her.
The people stood in amazement. The pastor, too, could do nothing
but stare. The woman's face was clouded in deep sorrow and her
cheeks were bathed in bitter tears. Finally the pastor regained
his composure and asked, "Why are you weeping?" In
a voice filled with sorrowful emotion, she replied, "There
was a time when my beloved Son was worshipped by my people on
this very spot. But now they have given this sacred soil over
to the plowman and the tiller and to the animals for grazing."
Without another word, she vanished.
People return to the
Church
The belief that the Mother of God had appeared in person to chide
them for their neglect of the Catholic Faith quickly grew among
the people. Most of them heeded her message and began to return
to the One True Church founded by her Divine Son, Jesus Christ.
So complete was this return that a decade later, on the feast
of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, more than 11,000
people received Holy Communion during a mass offered at the scene
of the apparitions.
A miracle occurs
Such was the miracle that the Mother of God wrought in the village
of Siluva where there had been no church, no priest, no Mass,
for almost eighty years. The Bishop appointed Fr. John Kazakevicius
to investigate the phenomenon and question all witnesses to the
events.
Blind man regains his
sight
In many apparitions of the Blessed Mother there is usually a
picture or statue associated with the event. Our Lady of Siluva
is not an exception. A blind man, more than 100 years old, lived
in a nearby village. The stories of the apparitions reached him
and he recalled a night, some eighty years before, when he helped
Father Holubka bury an ironclad chest filled with church treasures
beside a large rock. The villagers led him to the field of the
apparitions to see if he could help locate the place where the
treasures were buried. No sooner had he reached the spot, then
his sight was miraculously restored. Falling to his knees with
joy and gratitude, he pointed to the exact spot where the chest
had been buried.
Villagers find the buried
treasure
The ironclad chest was dug out of the ground and when it was
opened, there - perfectly preserved - was the large painting
of the Madonna and Child, several gold chalices, vestments, church
deeds, and other documents. The painting was enshrined permanently
in the Basilica of the Birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary and is
venerated to this day as the Miraculous Image of Siluva.
Miracles continue
Over the years, many miracles have been recorded and the shrine
has experienced numerous changes and larger churches had to be
built to accommodate the pilgrims. Devotion to Our Lady of Siluva
was growing until World War II brought about the destruction
of freedom in Lithuania. Since then, this world has seen many
changes. We find ourselves surrounded by moral decay and many
have lost their way. Today, Our Lady of Siluva is the most powerful
intercessor between the human race and Jesus Christ. She once
brought Lithuania back to the Church, so let us pray:
Most holy Mother, moved
by your tears, may we, as our forefathers did, revive the spirit
of adoration of your Son in our hearts. Holy Mother, please strengthen
the tottering structure of the shrine that is the family, bring
back your wandering children and forgive the sins of our nation.
Our Lady of Siluva, intercede
for your wandering children. Bring them home to Jesus. Amen. |
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Saturday, 06 September