Our Lady of Manorville Island

Patrona de Rockville Centre

Documented history. El Shrine of Our Lady of the Island (Sanctuary of Our Lady of the Island) was established by the Missionaries of the Society of Mary, known as Montfortians, in Manorville, Long Island, in the state of New York. The explicit purpose of the sanctuary was to offer "a center of authentic Marian spirituality according to the tradition of Saint Louis Mary Grignion of Montfort," favoring prayer, silence and consecration to Jesus Christ through Mary.

Main data

Origin and history

Documented history. El Shrine of Our Lady of the Island (Sanctuary of Our Lady of the Island) was established by the Missionaries of the Society of Mary, known as Montfortians, in Manorville, Long Island, in the state of New York. The explicit purpose of the sanctuary was to offer "a center of authentic Marian spirituality according to the tradition of Saint Louis Mary Grignion of Montfort," favoring prayer, silence and consecration to Jesus Christ through Mary.

The sanctuary is located on a large wooded terrain in the Diocese of Rockville Centre (New York, USA), and is developed as a place of pilgrimage and retreat with outdoor spaces, chapel and meditation areas. Several diocesan and Catholic press testimonies point out that, since its foundation, the project has been entrusted to the Montfortian Missionaries, who encourage sacramental life, pilgrimages and Marian catechesis there.

Tradition / legend. There are no apparitions, miraculous foundational stories or ancient legends specifically associated with "Our Lady of the Island" in Manorville. There is no indication of a legendary tradition similar to other Marian claims of medieval or colonial origin: the title comes mainly from the place (Long Island, "the Island") and from the pastoral intention to erect a Marian sanctuary at the service of Catholic New York. Any account that links this advocation to prodigious apparitions or findings of images should be considered "undocumented."

The image and the sanctuary

The image. In the heart of the sanctuary, a great statue of the Virgin with the Childlocated on the top of a hill, visible from different points of the enclosure. The iconography presents Mary as the Mother of God, standing, supporting the Child Jesus, in an attitude of welcome and intercession by the pilgrims; it is a monumental image in the open air, in modern and sober style. The sources consulted do not require the material of the sculpture with safety (it does not appear in the revised sources); therefore, on this specific point "does not contain" a verifiable technical data.

The sanctuary. The place is officially known as Shrine of Our Lady of the Island (Sanctuary of Our Lady of the Island). The set includes:

– una chapel para la celebración de la Eucaristía; – amplios gardens and forest areas, concebidos como espacios de oración y meditación; – una Via del Rosario o recorrido devocional con misterios meditados a lo largo del camino; – espacios para retiros, encuentros y peregrinaciones.

It is recognized as a Marian sanctuary within the corresponding diocese, but no consta which has been erected as a minor basilica or a national sanctuary of pontifical or conferential rank; its character is mainly diocesan, entrusted to the Montfortian Congregation.

Sponsorship and coronation

Patronage. Our Lady of the Island, as it is venerated in Manorville, is not officially recognized as the principal patron of the Diocese of Rockville Centre, the state of New York or a city or nation; its importance is mainly local and regional. Santuario mariano de Long Island. There is no formal proclamation of patronage at the diocesan or national level linked to this advocation.

Canon coronation. In the available documentation of the sanctuary and in the diocesan sources consulted does not contain a documented canonical coronation of the image of Our Lady of the Island in Manorville. Nor is reference to a pontifical decree or a solemn diocesan coronation with a canonical decree. In the absence of verifiable data on year and pontiff or delegate, it should be expressly stated: "does not contain a documented canonical coronation".

Party and devotion

Main party. The open sources do not indicate a liturgical date of their own, entered in the universal calendar or in a particular calendar, under the specific title "Our Lady of the Island." There is therefore no litigation fiesta propia officially recognized under that title. In the pastoral practice of the sanctuary, devotion is articulated around the great Marian parties of the Latin calendar (especially the Immaculate Conception, the Assumption, Our Lady of the Rosary, etc.) and the pilgrimage days organized by parishes and groups.

Pilgrimage and devotional features. El santuario has been consolidated as pilgrimage place for the Catholic communities of Long Island and the whole New York areaespecially for English-speaking and Spanish-speaking faithful. The Montfortian Missionaries promote:

– la frequent celebration of the Eucharist; – la Eucharistic adoration en la capilla; – la sacramental confession; – retiros y jornadas de oración mariana.

The faithful come individually and in parish groups, often on one-day pilgrimages, to walk through the gardens, to pray on the hill of the statue and to walk through the Way of the Rosary. The sources consulted do not provide precise annual inflow figures; therefore, on specific numerical data (number of pilgrims, etc.) no consta verifiable information.

Link to the Rosary

The relationship of Our Lady of the Island with the Rosary is intense and explicit at the pastoral level. The sanctuary has a Via del Rosario, that is, an outdoor tour in which pilgrims can meditate on the mysteries of the Rosary as they walk, in an atmosphere of silence and contemplation. This structure makes the Rosary one of the devotional axes of the place, in full harmony with the Marian spirituality of Saint Louis Mary Grignion of Montfort, for whom the Holy Rosary is a privileged way of contemplating Christ with Mary.

Although there is no specific historical advocation such as "Our Lady of the Rosary of the Island," the very design of the sanctuary - hill with the great image of the Virgin and the Child, gardens, Via del Rosario - guides the experience of the pilgrim to the paused and contemplative prayer of the Rosary, integrating body and spirit: walking, meditating on mysteries, contemplating the image of Mary and the Child Jesus, and culminating in the Eucharist.

When there is a lack of prodigious apparitions or stories, Marian devotion is based precisely on these ordinary means of grace: the Word of God, the sacraments and the prayer of the Rosary, which allows us to travel with Mary the mysteries of Christ's life. In this way, the Sanctuary of Our Lady of the Island is presented as a space where the recitation of the Rosary accompanies and sustains the consecration to Jesus by Mary proposed by the Montfortian tradition.