From 28 November to 01 December 2024, two Vincentian missionaries, Fathers Valerio Evangelisti and André Ngombo, organised “three days of prayer with Mary”, as part of the national pilgrimage of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, in the parish of Our Lady of the Rosary, bringing together Christians from the Petrignano, Torchiagina and Palazzo di Assisi pastoral units. These three days of Marian prayer, listening to the Word of God and sacramental practice awakened a glimmer of hope and faith in many believers.
Launched in 2020, with the blessing of Pope Francis, the three days with Mary (tre giorni con Maria) are considered one of the expressions of Vincentian missionary action in Italy and are in line with the experience of popular missions, even if the methods used are different. The Italian missionary province encourages this initiative, because by inserting the message of the Virgin Mary of the Miraculous Medal into the missionary discourse, we dare to remind humanity of Mary’s role in the plan of salvation. In fact, every true and effective mission is based on the need for every Christian to encounter Christ. And Marian prayer helps everyone to rediscover the possibility of this encounter with Christ, who gives them life and the strength to undertake the journey of faith as pilgrims of hope.
The other aspect of our mission today is to spread devotion to the Virgin Mary of the Miraculous Medal, so that believers turn to Mary and benefit from her powerful intercession, knowing that she is a loving mother who presents our prayers to her Son. Such a mission is an essential dynamic in Christian life and plays a crucial role in nourishing and strengthening faith and hope. The most eloquent example is that of the Christians of the parish of Our Lady of the Rosary in Torchiagina.
It should be noted that the management of the parish of Our Lady of the Rosary is the fruit of a
good collaboration between the parish priest Don Maurizio and the Capuchin nuns, who offer an enriching and effective synergy for the mission of the Church. Over the course of the three days, we noticed that the presence of the sisters strengthens the spiritual commitment of the community through their prayers, songs and accompaniment of the faithful, particularly through their notable involvement in various ministries such as catechesis and visiting the sick. Not only did we all stay with the sisters, but the same sisters, at Don Maurizio’s request, were available, along with other ministers, to accompany the missionaries during visits to the sick and the distribution of medals.
Here’s what happened during the “tre giorni con Maria”:
At 4.10pm on Thursday 28 November 2024, when the sacred effigy arrived, the Virgin was received at the F.lli Passeri snc premises, located at the beginning of the town in Via Adelmo Canini, 83. From here, around 120 people, who had come to greet the Virgin Mary with their parish priest, began the procession to the church. The procession will be followed by the praying of the rosary at 6pm, and then the celebration of the Eucharist at 6.30pm.
Friday 29 November 2024 began with a visit to the sick and elderly in the parish. Accompanied by the nuns, the extraordinary ministers of communion and the volunteers, we brought the miraculous medal to people who were no longer able to move about. On the same day, at 4pm, we held a catechesis meeting on the theme: “God is Father and loves everyone; his love is also expressed through the simple sign of the Miraculous Medal”. At the end, there was a moment of meditation, followed by the recitation of the rosary at 6.00 pm and the celebration of the Eucharist at 6.30 pm. The evening continued with a penitential liturgy celebrated at 8.30pm, with the possibility of confession.
As the visit to the sick was to involve the whole pastoral unit, on Saturday 30 November 2024, at 9.30am, we visited the families and patients of Palazzo and Petrignano. In the afternoon, at 3pm, a second catechetical meeting was held for the catechism children. At 16:00, the third catechetical meeting, on the theme: “God loves everyone through gestures of closeness that inspire us to live”. After a time of meditation, the rosary at 6.00 pm and Mass for the First Sunday of Advent at 6.30 pm, the evening will close with the Marian Vigil and the procession through the streets of the village of Torchiagina. And the crowd was happy to walk in peace with the Immaculate Virgin of the Miraculous Medal.
The last day of the pilgrimage, 01 December 2024, was marked by two important events: the celebration of the final mass of the pilgrimage at 11am and the procession with the sacred effigy. In fact, after the mass, followed by the distribution of the miraculous medal, the Christians of the parish wanted to greet the Virgin Mary, by accompanying her in procession, with songs of thanksgiving as far as the parish border. And so ended a fruitful three days with Mary.
Seeing the enthusiasm of the Christians in this pastoral unit to take part in the activities during these three days with Mary, we dare to believe that they seized this opportunity to deeply rediscover the beauty of their faith and to rekindle a new hope, in order to bring about a spiritual renewal. We hope that the seed sown will continue to bear fruit.
Father André NGOMBO, CM
