A: Apparitions to Pierina Gilli, a nurse, are
said to have taken place in 1947 (7/13; 10/28; 11/22; and 12/8).
On the first occasion, Mary was clothed in a purple dress, her
heart pierced by three swords. Her message can be summarized as:
"Prayer, sacrifice, repentence."
During the subsequent appearances, Mary was dressed in white with
three roses on her breast. On July 13, she asked that the thirteenth of
each month be commemorated as a Marian day. She called herself
mysterious or mystical rose and asked people to repent for sins
against faith and morals. She called the noon hour of Dec. 8,
1947 an "hour of grace."
Also, a statue of Mary as Rosa Mystica was alleged to
have shed tears at St. John of God parish in Chicago, IL from May,
1984 until, at least, 1992. The phenomenon started after some of
the parishoners (including the pastor) visited the original
shrine at Montichiari. However, the archdiocesan investigation
could not rule out natural causes and decided there was "no
evidence of a miracle" in 1987. Stephen Roszell released a film
documentary on this phenomenon in 1992.
For more information, see Maria - "Rosa Mystica: Montichiari-Fontanelle" by Alfons Maria Weigl.
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