Our Lady of Manaoag

The apparition: the voice from the tree cup

By 1610, when the Dominican friars evangelized the region of Pangasinan, a local farmer was walking back to his house when the afternoon fell when he suddenly heard a mysterious voice of a woman calling him by name. He looked up and saw, on the cup of a tree wrapped in a heavenly glow, a beautiful Lady holding a rosary in her right hand and the Child Jesus on her left arm.

The Lady said, "Son, I want a church in my honor. My children will receive great favors in this place." The man, astonished and trembling, ran to tell his family and the Dominican friars what happened. When they came to the place, they found the image of a Morena Virgin with the Child in their arms. They took the image to the parish church, but the image mysteriously disappeared and was found again in the same tree. They then understood that the Virgin wished to remain there, and in that place they built the first chapel.

The place was given the name of Manaoag, derived from the pangasin verb deader, which means "call." Manaoag is therefore "the place of call," where the Virgin called her people.

The miraculous image

The image of Our Lady of Manaoag is a 16th century size made of ivory and silver, of Spanish origin, which was taken to the Philippines by Father Juan de San Jacinto through the Manila Galeon from Acapulco. She represents the Virgin of the Rosary in her most classic version: Mary holds the Child Jesus on her left arm while with her right hand she offers the Rosary. They both wear rich gold-embroidered garments. The image is about 1 meter high.

From the very first moment, the sanctuary was miraculously protected. During the tribal wars, the attacks of the mountain tribes - which launched incendiary arrows against the straw-ceiling churches - never managed to set fire to the sanctuary. During World War II, several bombs fell on the compound but none exploded. The faithful attribute these portents to the direct protection of the Virgin.

The sanctuary and the pilgrimage

The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Manaoag is one of the most important pilgrimage places in the Philippines. Managed by the Order of Preachers (Dominicans), the present sanctuary is a Neorromic-style basilica built in the 20th century, with an imposing limestone façade and a wide atrium that welcomes the crowds of pilgrims.

Pope Pius XI canonically crowned the image on April 22, 1926. In 2011, Pope Benedict XVI granted the sanctuary the same indulgences as the Basilica of St. Mary the Major of Rome, equating it spiritually to one of the four papal basilics. The image was declared Patron of the Sick, the Unprotected and the needy.

The pilgrimage reaches its peak during Lent, Easter, May and October. The pilgrims walk long distances, many on their knees, making promises to the Virgin. The sanctuary is open every day of the year and receives a constant influx of faithful who seek healing for their diseases, comfort for their sorrows and solution for their problems.

The documented miracles

The oral tradition and the archives of the sanctuary collect countless miracles attributed to Our Lady of Manaoag. Among the most famous are curations of incurable diseases, protection from natural disasters, conversions of embedernid sinners, and the special protection of the sanctuary during armed attacks. The walls of the sanctuary are covered with exvotes - arms, legs and hearts of silver - donated by grateful faithful.

The most remembered miracle occurred during the 19th century cholera epidemic, when the image was passed in procession through the fields and the disease abruptly ceased. Since then, the processions of the Virgin for rice trees and agricultural communities are a tradition that is repeated in times of need.

Prayer to Our Lady of Manaoag