The Sanctuary "Our Lady of Merciful Jesus and Rosa," and image of Our Lady, takes us back in 1600, namely in 1655, and is tied to the vicissitudes of the river Tagliamento. The river, which flows down from the Carnic Alps, has accumulated over thousands of years, especially in its middle course a huge blanket of gravel, beneath which flows underground for long stretches, re-emerging here and there with veins more or less turgid and regular, such as braids that are made and discarding all the time. Always the great river during periods of high rainfall in the Alps, thickens downstream waters, becoming "fierce and rapacious, changing and overwhelming." His impetuosity, they knew something different villages scattered on the edge of his bed and he knew something even the nucleus of "Rosa", which repeatedly attacked by violent floods of the Tagliamento, within about three centuries had to occupy four different positions, as evidenced by the four churches built in the years 1648 to 1851: one on the left bank of the river and three on the right bank.

The first sign

James Giacomuzzi Rosa for himself and his large family 1649 rebuilt a new home but taking from his old home a box of pebbles of the river, whose façade was painted at the bottom of a gentle Madonna with the Child in her arms. In breaking down the old house, that square with the image of the Virgin, while falling, had not broken. And therefore he decided to place it in its new home, right at the entrance, on the porch. Before that image often his family gathered in prayer. Yet he and many of the country had the bad habit of swearing during the day and work in the fields, against God, with blasphemous phrases, complaining about the hard life, to the inclemency of the place, after the famine and plague.

Apparition of Our Lady in Mariute

On February 2, 1655, the Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple, most of the family Giacomuzzi was in church for religious services. She stayed at home with her aunts, Mariute, a daughter of eight and a half years, suffering from epileptic disease. Suddenly the aunts saw the face of Mariute fix the image of the Virgin, and as the girl approached the Madonna painted on the wall, his face lit up the happy, as if in ecstasy. Aunts, surprised at what was happening before their eyes, waited for the girl he recovered from that state of rapture and then immediately overwhelmed him with questions: Who? how? because? What did you see? The Mariute, with unusual language, for which she was suffering from falling sickness, reported the words of the apparition, with great serenity and sweetness: "I'm not good in this place where blasphemy against My Son. Di 'to your father who repent and make me carry in a church located on a busy street. Warn the inhabitants of the area to refrain from the sin of blasphemy. For because of this huge impiety were devastated by hail your campaigns in recent years and are suspended over your head even more terrible punishments. Makes' as you say, and in this day forward you will not be exposed to the attacks of evil, which so far you molested. " The father of Mariute, James, became aware of the apparition of the Virgin to her daughter, suddenly cured of the disease that attach them from birth, he felt the need to talk about with the curate of Rosa first and then with the old parish priest of the Parish of Rose, but both fired him in a bad way, not believing his story. Who believed him instead was a Franciscan priest, Father Vitale Vitali, who came from Rome to San Vito to keep the Lenten sermons. He, made his appearance careful investigation of the facts and of Rosa, concluded that "the Blessed Virgin had appeared and spoke to the girl Giacomuzzi Mary Rose." Hence the decision to carry the miraculous image of San Vito. It was the evening of March 31, 1655, when it was set up a cart for transport. The same Giacomuzzi you a pair of yoked oxen of his stables. When they started the journey, the sun was near sunset: the parish priest and the people, with banners and torches, followed by a pilgrimage wagon. The image, according to Father Vitale Vitali, was also accompanied by three angels in the sky that looked like three torches.

The transport of the image and the first miracles

The accompanied him to the church of San Nicolò, outside San Vito, and in this church was placed the image of the Madonna. From now on miraculous events occurred: "Today - Father Vitali writes to the Bishop of Concordia - April 3, 1655, he came to San Giovanni a cripple on crutches. Having prayed that the Virgin was restored in the presence of a lot of people." The miracle is depicted in one of the boxes in the frame of this print in 1600, the oldest of the Sanctuary. The church of "St. Nicholas extra muros" (outside the walls of San Vito) was a small building with stones and bricks, consists of a rectangular nave and a semicircular apse. It was built, according to some, around 1000, to others later, between 1280 and 1310 In 1482, a new apse were built and new walls and at the front, a porch.


 

The Church of St. Nicholas and the old Sanctuary

On the occasion of the 150th anniversary of the apparition and translation of the image, it was decided to erect a new church and wider, but the war events related to the Napoleonic period it delayed the execution, which had been scheduled for early 1800. In 1836 it was finally demolished the old building of the Shrine of St. Nicholas and until 1860 continued the work for the new sanctuary.
 

The coronation of the image

The day of 8 September was unforgettable, so much so that every year on that date we celebrate Our Lady of Ros; and all the people, especially children, are placed again under his protection of the Mother loving and merciful. An important date is the shrine on September 8, 1881 in front of a huge crowd and devout, the Bishop of Concordia Mons. Pio Rossi, assisted by other bishops most excellent, put on the head of the venerated image of the Virgin of the Rose and a Baby Jesus golden crown, declaring behind the decree of Pope Leo XIII, that she is our Queen, the Queen of the Tagliamento and its peoples.

The construction of the bell tower

Between 1893 and 1902 the tower was built, the project of Pietro Saccardo of Venice. In the niches, located at the height of the bells, were placed the statues of St. Joseph, St. Peter, St. Paul and the Redeemer blessing. These works by the sculptor Paul Passomai Solighetto. Higher up on the drum, it was built a dense columns, topped by a cupola and a lantern, a sign of light that penetrates the hearts here who come in search of peace and consolation. The bell tower is octagonal in shape, is called the "bell tower of the eggs" because it was built in large part with the proceeds from the collection of the eggs, made by children and teenagers, who spent weekly from house to house to pick them up. Among the cheering crowd, on the day of the inauguration, there was a holy priest: Don Matteo Catuzzo, the Cashier of the "Commission for the Factory of the Campanile."

Development of new realities around the sanctuary

Attracted by the wonders of the miraculous image of the Virgin, many pilgrims came to visit the shrine, especially after the renovation and expansion of 1836 With the passage of time, many families began to build their houses around the church, for which he was born the need for a more constant and assiduous pastoral care for the population in that place of worship. So in 1906, to officiate in the sanctuary, were invited Religious Salesians, but had to abandon their activities because of the war and the 1917 invasion of Austria After the Second World War, to guard the sanctuary were called the Comboni Missionaries, who stopped for just three years, from 1920 to 1923 In 1923 the Bishop of Concordia, Mons. Luigi Paulini, invited the Franciscan Friars of the Province of Venice to assume the custody and management of the Sanctuary of the Madonna di Rosa. The first friars arrived in San Vito March 28, 1923, as successors of the work carried out by their brother, Father Vitale Vitali just that that first, back in 1655 he had believed the apparition of the Virgin Mary to the child Giacomuzzi. One of the first initiatives of the brothers, after their arrival at the Sanctuary, was the publication of a monthly magazine, titled "The voice of Mary", to keep alive the devotion to Our Lady in the various pilgrims, and among the many emigrants. Our Lady of Rosa became so feel even further, to the Friuli scattered 'throughout the world. Since 1931, the 50th anniversary of the coronation of the Virgin, to the years before the Second World War, the old sanctuary was adorned with works of talented artists from Friuli and Veneto, that it was possible to achieve with the spontaneous offerings of the population. Since the Second World War had begun, and many men were involved in the various war fronts, at the request of the soldiers and the people, especially women, had been turned on before the altar of Our Lady, the "lamp of the Soldier" was burning day and night, before the Mother of Mercy, in a sign of constant prayer and unquenchable love. The war was spreading everywhere now, and no longer felt safe because the bombings hit any target. Unfortunately, workshops and German bunkers, located right next to the shrine, ended up drawing the attacks of allied aircraft, which, twice, struck before the Shrine and then the adjacent convent, a few months away.

The years of World War 

Two bombing and the discovery of the image

It was early afternoon of December 31, 1944, a quiet afternoon, when one of the six fighter-bombers, which were currently flying over San Vito, was dropped a bomb weighing about three tons, which struck the shrine in his side spooky. It was followed by a loud crash and the apse and the altar, organ and part of the ex-voto were destroyed and wrapped in a huge cloud of dust, but without hitting the faithful or friars. The first concern of all was the picture of the Madonna. There was the fear that, being formed of a brittle wall rocks of the Tagliamento, had crumbled under the rubble. From the frantic search was immediately recovered intact only the two pissidi. But the next day, resumed the research with the assistance of all the people present, around 10, there appears intact the picture of the Virgin. A cry of joy rides on the lips of those present, praising the "miracle", because the square of stones and lime with the effigy of the Madonna and Child was kept intact under beams and columns pulled down. A few months later, on the evening of March 21, 1945, a massive air attack on Casarsa and San Vito dropped on the Sanctuary and the nearby Convent bombs that tore through the buildings. The painting of the Madonna again disappeared under piles of rubble. By now it was believed that it was irreparably destroyed. Yet after two hours of frantic search, here reappear from under the rubble of the Convent hit, and once again intact, the stones in the box with the fresco of the Virgin. All was clear that it was a second miracle. The Sanctuary and Convent could be said to be destroyed, but the picture of the Virgin was still unharmed, to make sure of his desire to be close to all as the Mother of Mercy. An invisible hand from heaven had defended and preserved the ancient image of the Virgin of Rosa affection and devotion and gratitude of San Vito and many, many parts, would be realized here. Cut down the crumbling walls of the Sanctuary wrecked on the square remained high and lonely desert was the bell tower, the only survivor of the violent bombing. "When will the new Sanctuary?" - Asking people, orphaned of that place of worship so loved. The Franciscan fathers do not lose heart and just received the gift of the large land known as the "garden", which was adjacent to the old convent, is now engaged in projects and funding to rebuild, bigger, a new Marian shrine, just next to the road more and more popular. Character-known, Father Timothy Bertinato was certainly the most fervent promoter of reconstruction. He did his best with architects and designers, and became foreman bricklayer, driver and accountant, technical director and engineer. Many people, for various reasons, participated. Who with contributions in money, especially by emigrants, who labor with occasional, some with material of various kinds; young men of the place and conscripts, along with carpenters and masons, all under the command of P. Timothy, to complete the work of reconstruction. On August 28, 1960, accompanied by a massive crowd, the miraculous image of Our Lady of Rosa was triumphantly carried into the new and magnificent Sanctuary, which was so open to the worship of the faithful.

The new Sanctuary

The development of the Sanctuary was made through faith, commitment and the work of several people, which goes so much about and our gratitude. Among the many remember in particular: - Father Timothy Bertinato, author and tireless director of the construction of the Sanctuary; - Father Raymond Padrin, which resulted in the Italian cult of Divine Mercy and St. Vitus built the headquarters of the Italian Secretariat for the diffusion of Jesus - the Merciful throughout the world; - Father Angelico De Nicolò, who after returning from the mission in China, he devoted the rest of the years to assist the pilgrims of the Sanctuary; - Santa Faustina Kowalska, who with his revelations opened the worship of Divine Mercy; And here it is, the new sanctuary, in its imposing size, woven brick "visible face", on which stands the whiteness of Istrian stone. The church has a Latin cross, is inStile Romanesque modernized, with large rosettes and stylish windows on the front and on the sides. A succession of arches goes all around the Sanctuary, in the cloister of Romanesque-Byzantine style, so as to infuse lightness and sweetness to the whole building.