Grant PEACE in the world we live
Our Lady of Graces
It’s interesting to note that Our Lady of Grace is a Title of Mary. The feast day associated with this title is February 7. The title of Our Lady of Grace is venerated in many countries throughout the world. Many parishes, churches, and schools bear this name.
Here, we present to you, Our Lady of Graces –a Catholic shrine, in Cotignac, Provence, a village in France, where Mother Mary with baby Jesus and St Joseph appeared to devotees.
Feast day: March 18 – Apparition of Our Lady of Grace and St. Joseph.
The History
On August 10, 1519, on the feast of St. Lawrence Martyr, a lumberjack, Jean de la Baume 2, climbed Mont Verdaille which overlooks Cotignac. He was 22 years old. He began his day by praying. Suddenly a cloud appeared to him, surrounding the Virgin Mary with the Child Jesus in her arms, accompanied by St. Michael the Archangel and St. Bernard. Our Lady was standing.
She then addresses John in these terms: “I am the Virgin Mary. Go and tell the clergy and the consuls of Cotignac to build me a church here, under the name of Our Lady of Graces and that they come in procession to receive the gifts that I want to spread there.”
Then the vision disappeared. John kept the message to himself. The next day, August 11, he returned to the same place to complete his cut. The apparition recurred and he again received the same message. Jean then rushed to the village to announce what he had seen and heard.
His testimony was well received, so much so that on the following September 14, the Feast of the Holy Cross, the municipal archives report the laying of the first stone after a great procession consisting of the entire community, clergy, and mayor in the lead.
Ecclesiastical approval was not long in coming since on March 17, 1521 Pope Leo X by a papal bill granted a series of privileges to the sanctuary of Our Lady of Graces.
The Current Church at Cotignac, France
The current church dates from 1810, the primitive church having been looted and razed by the revolutionaries. The new church was rebuilt on the same plan as the primitive church, and received the statue of the Virgin, which had been preserved from the destructive rage, as well as the painting of the Virgin representing the apparition and dating from the 16th century.
The Blessed Virgin has kept her promise and continues to shower her graces on the pilgrims of Cotignac. Devotees come in procession to find new life by receiving graces, sources of joy, and fruitfulness.
The Royal Touch
This church has a strong link with the French Monarchy as well. King Louis XIII was blessed with a son after a fervent prayer to Mother Mary, Our Lady of Grace. The birth of the baby was considered a miracle. Following this miracle, King Louis XIII decided to consecrate the kingdom of France to the Virgin. The personal visit of King Louis XIV in 1660, accompanied by his mother, and the King's tokens of recognition to the sanctuary anchored a strong link between the monarchy and the sanctuary of Our Lady of Graces.
The Prayer
Our Lady of Graces, in your appearance at Cotignac, France,
You invited us to solicit your favors.
We run with confidence to implore your help.
Grant PEACE in the world we live
To the righteous, perseverance,
To the sad souls, the consolation,
To the hearts slaughtered, the courage and the confidence,
Credits: Rehana Rodrigues, OITS member
To the sick, the health,
To the sinners, the repentance and the pardon,
To the souls of purgatory, relief and deliverance,
To each of us your maternal protection .
We especially implore your assistance at the hour of our death.
Our Lady of Graces, pray for us. Amen