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On March 22, 1888, in Castelpetroso, two shepherdesses from the north of Italy, Fabiana Cecchino (1853-1939) and Serafina Giovanna Valentino (1854-1931), saw a light coming out of a cleft in a rock, and immediately afterwards, the "Madonna appeared in the center of this light", under the aspect of Our Lady of Sorrows. On April 5, 1888, Diamante Cecchino had the same vision, then Teodora Venditti and her three daughters starting on April 24. Added to this list were Count Acquaderni of Bologna and several ecclesiastics: Bishop Macarone Palmieri, the diocesan bishop; Don Nardone, the archpriest of Boiano; and Don Achille Ferrara, the archpriest of Castelpetroso.
The Virgin Mary appeared under various aspects: in tears, in prayer, etc. Some recognized Our Lady of Carmel, others the Mater Dolorosa, accompanied by the archangel St. Michael and other saints, such as Anthony of Padua and Sebastian.
On May 16, 1888, a priest alleged an apparition of Christ bleeding, with his Mother. Healings were reported, including that of a child who was born mute. Thousands of people went to pray at the site.
Bishop Palmieri informed Pope Leo XIII and created a commission of inquiry. On February 23, 1889, he declared: "I experienced an apparition of the Virgin. She appeared to me in the guise of Our Lady of Sorrows."
The prelate wished to have a chapel built at the "holy place" of the apparitions. On September 28, 1890, he laid the foundation stone of the shrine, assisted by the bishops of Isernia, Trivento and Termoli, in the presence of 30,000 faithful.
On December 6, 1973, Paul VI declared Our Lady of Castelpetroso patroness of the region. A center for pilgrims was built. In 1993, the shrine was entrusted to the Franciscan brothers and sisters of the Immaculate. On March 19, 1995, Pope John Paul II visited the site.
Source: Patrick Sbalchiero, article "Castelpetroso", in: René Laurentin and Patrick Sbalchiero, Dictionnaire encyclopédique des apparitions de la Vierge (Adapted)