Divina Virtute
{«Non est, inquit, vobis opus hanc, quam ædificavi, dedicare ecclesiam:
ipse enim, qui condidi, etiam dedicavi.
Vos tantùm intrate, et, me adstante patrono, precibus locum frequentate»
“It is not your task to consecrate this church that I have built;
I myself, who founded it, have also consecrated it.
You have only to enter and, under my protection, frequent this place in prayer.”
Apparitio Sancti Michaëlis in Monte Gargano
On this day, we share in the joy of our dearest Giuseppe and Cristina, Claudio and Tina, who are respectively celebrating their twenty-seventh and second wedding anniversaries. We give thanks to the Lord and to the Most Holy Virgin Mary for the graces bestowed upon them, for the journey they have traveled, and for the assistance extended to them by Divine Providence throughout these years. We offer this Holy Mass on their behalf, invoking abundant blessings upon them through the intercession of Our Lady of Pompeii and Saint Michael the Archangel.
Today, May 8th, Holy Church celebrates three apparitions of the glorious Archangel Saint Michael, which took place between the years 490 and 493 on Mount Gargano, in the region of Puglia.
The FIRST APPARITION, known as the “episode of the bull,” took place in the year 490, during the Pontificate of Felix III and the reign of Emperor Zeno, in the city of Siponto (modern-day Manfredonia). A wealthy nobleman of Siponto named Gargano, having lost a bull that was out grazing, gathered a large number of servants and organized a search through the rugged terrain of the mountain. He eventually found the animal at the summit, standing motionless before the entrance of an inaccessible cave. Seized by rage, Gargano drew his bow and loosed a poisoned arrow at the rebellious beast. The shaft, however, inexplicably reversed its trajectory and struck Gargano himself, wounding him grievously.
Astonished by this prodigy, Gargano went to the Bishop of Siponto, Saint Lawrence Maiorano, to seek counsel. The Prelate, discerning a supernatural intervention, ordered a triduum of fasting and public prayer so that the meaning of the event might be revealed. At the close of the third day (by tradition May 8), the Archangel Michael appeared to the Bishop and spoke these words:
“You did well to ask of God that which was hidden from men. A miracle has struck the man with his own arrow, so that it might be clear that all this comes to pass by My will. I am the Archangel Michael, and I stand always in the presence of God. This cavern is sacred to Me. And since I have resolved to protect this place and its inhabitants here on earth, I have chosen to attest in this manner that I am the patron and guardian of this place and of all that transpires within it. Where the rock opens wide, the sins of men may be forgiven. Whatever is asked here in prayer shall be granted. Go, therefore, to the mountain and dedicate the grotto to Christian worship.”
The SECOND APPARITION of the Archangel Michael on Mount Gargano, known as the “Episode of the Victory” or “of the Battle,” took place in the year 492. Siponto was under siege by a pagan army advancing from Naples. The people of Siponto, exhausted and on the verge of surrender, turned to their Bishop, Saint Lawrence Maiorano; inspired by his devotion to the Archangel, he proclaimed a triduum of fasting, prayer, and penance. The people gathered in the Cathedral of Santa Maria in Siponto to implore protection. On the night preceding the battle, while the Bishop was deep in prayer, Saint Michael appeared to him in a vision, surrounded by resplendent light, and spoke these words:
“Do not fear; your prayers have been answered. I myself will intervene to grant victory to the Sipontini. You, therefore, shall join battle at the fourth hour of this very day.”
The Bishop conveyed the angelic assurance to the people and ordered them to fortify themselves with the Sacraments. At the appointed hour, the people of Siponto and Benevento advanced against the enemy; the victory was total and accompanied by prodigious phenomena that demonstrated the Archangel’s direct intervention. A dense, dark cloud shrouded the summit of Mount Gargano; a violent earthquake shook the earth; lightning bolts and thunder crashed down upon the invaders (striking down six hundred of the enemy); and the sea churned with furious waves. Not a single person from Siponto or Benevento was wounded, while their adversaries were routed and pursued all the way to Naples. The battle concluded on May 8 – a date that became the dies festus of the Archangel on Mount Gargano and which explains the liturgical institution of the Feast of the Apparition of Saint Michael, celebrated precisely on May 8 in the Catholic Calendar.
The THIRD APPARITION took place in 493. Following the victory, Bishop Lorenzo Maiorano decided to obey the divine command and consecrate the grotto. He traveled to Rome to obtain the approval of Pope Gelasius, who authorized the consecration, ordering a new triduum of fasting and penance together with the bishops of Apulia. On the final night of the fast, the Archangel Michael appeared to the Bishop and said to him:
“It is not your task to consecrate this church that I have built; I myself, who founded it, have also consecrated it. You need only enter and, under my patronage, frequent this place in prayer.”
The devotion spread rapidly, particularly with the arrival of the Lombards in the 7th century, who chose Saint Michael as their national patron and expanded the complex. The sanctuary became a pilgrimage destination along the Via Sacra Langobardorum and over the centuries has been architecturally enriched. To this day, the grotto preserves the altar and the footprint of Saint Michael.
Reflecting upon these wondrous events, one cannot help but marvel at the extraordinary intervention of the Archangel Saint Michael, who did not merely limit himself to protecting the faithful but went so far as to personally consecrate the sacred Grotto of Gargano and to miraculously rout the enemies of the Apulian faithful. The sincere and trusting faith of that era moved Heaven to come to the aid of the Christian people. The prayers of the Bishop and the people were answered with divine power, for they were animated by a pure and total confidence in Divine Providence.
Today, regrettably, the world and the Church find themselves in such a terrible crisis precisely because men have lost that pure and trusting Faith which obtains all things from God. Where prayer has grown lukewarm, where trust in divine power has been supplanted by human presumption, there Heaven remains silent. It is, therefore, a matter of urgency to return to the purity of Faith and to rekindle the living flame of Charity, without which every effort remains in vain.
On this journey of conversion, may we be aided and guided by the Queen of the Most Holy Rosary of Pompeii, whom today, on this day dedicated to Her, we invoke at noon with the Supplication inspired by Blessed Bartolo Longo. And let us remember that, just as Longo himself, who had enlisted in the ranks of that infamous sect (Freemasonry) and was a sworn enemy of Christ and the Church, was touched by Grace, converted, and made reparation with Christian zeal for the evil he had committed. So too may the enemies we face today be enlightened by that same Divine Mercy and return humbly to the Lord. And so may it be.
+ Carlo Maria Viganò, Archbishop
Viterbo, 8 May MMXXVI
In Appartitione S.cti Michaëlis Archangeli
[1] The reformed “post-conciliar” Church has abolished the two feasts of the Apparition and the Dedication of Saint Michael the Archangel, consolidating the three Archangels Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, into the commemoration of September 29.
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