The miraculous icon of Our Lady of Divine Love, safely kept inside the Sanctuary, was a fresco painting on the very top of the tower, where in the year 174O, a pilgrim attacked by a pack of ferocious dog was saved after faithfully praying the Divine Mother.(Virgin Mary).
This was the cistern of the medieval castle. In 1947 Don Umberto
Terenzi made it into a splendid church. In the apses you can admire
the mosaic of the Divine Shepherd and Jesus' Sepulcher where the
Mother of Sorrows, next to Jesus deceased, with a painful look
tells us:
This is part of the "Casa del Pellegrino" compound. It is for the use of the Parish community where, every Sunday, Christenings are celebrated. The Christening Font and the holy water font at the entrance remind everyone the promises and the duties of the Christening and of Christian life.
Built in 1983, the Holy Year for Redemption, it is a holy
space used for meditation and the sacrament of Reconciliation.
It is good to devote some time there, and a particular place
for Confession.
Opposite the tower of the first Miracle, you can see a very
ancient grotto hollowed into a tufa hill.
In the year 1958 it was made into a site for prayers and devotion
- a rememberence of the centennial anniversary of the Virgin apparitions
in Lourdes.
Many believers come here even at nighttime for a prayer and
a visit to the Lord's Mother.
Here are displayed and you can admire, more than a thousands
icons of the Holy Virgin, worshipped in Sanctuaries in Italy
and all over world.
Each icon is also symbolic of the piety of the population
of whole communities, sometimes of whole nations.
They remind us of the history, often sorrowful of a population.
This display is divided in regional stands and when the visitors
approach it, each one of them goes searching for the icons dearest
to them.
A smile indicates such a meeting together with its many remembrances,
and you can then see an invocation on each lip.
The renowned shroud which wrapped the body of Jesus
has pointed out some striking details on the passion and death
of the Lord.
The images of the "Holy Sindone" help us to understand
how deeply Christ must have suffered.
This document is the only testimonial of the resurrection
in the sepulcher.
Once, people lit many small lights and candles inside the
Sanctuary.
Today there is a site beside the Sanctuary where people can
light these luminous signs of faith in front of the image of the
Virgin Mary.
They are a sign of devotion. The live flames remind us of
the gift of faith and the duty of charity.
Along the small avenue which starts from the tower of the
First Miracle, you will find the seven stations of the Via della
Madre Dolorosa (Way of The Mother of Sorrows).
These are a rememberance of particular moments in the life
of our Holy Mary which were marked by immense sorrow.
In here you can visit a collection of "ex-voto" of
every kind and particularly trophies offered by world famous
sports-champions.
You may also purchase religious objects such as holy images
and prayer-books for your dearest or your friends, to remind them
of your prayers at the feet of the Lady of Divine Love.
This is the compound which includes the Headquarters of the Daughters of Our Lady of the Divine Love and the Institute for Girls, which gives hospitality (gives a home to) to little girls (from needy families) from families in poor living conditions) living in serious difficulties.
The Hostel was opened in the year 1983, at the service of the spirituality of the Sanctuary, by means of welcoming hospitality. Meetings, assemblies, days of prayers, and spiritual meditation take place in here.
Gives everybody the opportunity to contemplate nature to relax
the spirit of peace.
With the psalm-reader we can also exclaim: