Vatican Approves Devotion to Our Lady of the Rock

The Vatican’s Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) has approved devotion to the Shrine of Our Lady of the Rock in Santa Domenica di Placanica, southern Italy.

This decision follows the new norms for evaluating spiritual phenomena, issued in May, which streamline the approval process for such devotions.

Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, prefect of the DDF, confirmed the nihil obstat, noting that “no critical or risky elements have emerged, much less problems of obvious gravity. Instead, there are signs of grace and spiritual conversion.”

The devotion dates back to 1968, when Cosimo Fragomeni, then an 18-year-old shepherd, claimed to have seen the Virgin Mary. According to Fragomeni, the Virgin’s messages included a call to prayer and conversion, and a desire to establish a center of spirituality. A larger shrine was later built on the site, which became a popular pilgrimage destination.

Bishop Francesco Oliva of Locri-Gerace, who oversees the shrine, highlighted the positive spiritual impact on the faithful in a letter to the DDF: “the existence of the spirit of prayer, conversions, some vocations to the priesthood and religious life, testimonies of charity, as well as a healthy devotion, and other spiritual fruits.”

The DDF emphasized that the approval of devotion does not imply any judgment on the supernatural character of the events or on the lives of those involved. The faithful are encouraged to participate in the devotion prudently and in accordance with Church teaching.

The Shrine of Our Lady of the Rock was officially recognized as a diocesan sanctuary in 2016.

Last week, the Vatican ruled “Our Lady of All Nations” Marian apparitions are not supernatural.

In June, they also ruled that alleged apparitions of the Virgin Mary in Trevignano Romano, a town northwest of Rome, are not supernatural.

However, they recently gave approval to the devotion to Our Lady of Montichiari, Rose Mystica as well.

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