Our Lady of Sorrows appeared to an Italian bishop in 1888

On March 22, 1888, in the region of Bologna in Italy, two shepherdesses, Fabiana Cecchino (1853-1939) and Serafina Giovanna Valentino (1854-1931), saw a light coming out of a crack in a rock, and then immediately afterwards, the "Virgin appeared in the center of this light", under the features of Our Lady of Sorrows. On April 5, 1888, a certain Diamante Cecchino also had a similar vision, then Teodora Venditti and her three daughters on the following April 24. Added to this list were Count Acquaderni of Bologna and several churchmen: Bishop Macarone (the local bishop), and the archpriests of Boiano and Castelpetroso, two nearby towns.

The Virgin Mary appeared under various aspects: at times weeping, in prayer, etc. Some people recognized Our Lady of Carmel, others the Mater Dolorosa, accompanied by the Archangel Saint Michael, Saint Anthony of Padua and Saint Sebastian.

On May 16, 1888, a priest reported seeing an apparition of Christ bleeding, with his Mother. Healings were reported, including that of a child who was born mute. After that, thousands of people went to visit the place.

The diocesan clergy was divided about the apparitions.

The local bishop alerted Pope Leo XIII and appointed a commission of inquiry. On February 23, 1889, he declared: "I received an apparition of the Virgin. She appeared to me as Our Lady of Sorrows." The bishop decided to build a chapel at the "holy place" of the apparitions. On September 28, 1890, he laid the foundation stone for the shrine, in the presence of 30,000 faithful.

In 1931, his successor founded an orphanage near the shrine. In 1947, the "via matris" was built, retracing the itinerary of the Virgin's series of apparitions, with seven small stations evoking the seven major sorrows of Mary.

On December 6, 1973, Pope Paul VI declared Our Lady of Castelpetroso patroness of the region, and more recently, in 1993, the shrine was entrusted to the Franciscan brothers and sisters of the Immaculate. On March 19, 1995, John Paul II visited the site.

Source: Marian Enciclopedia