Our Lady of the Middle

Marian devotion of Monopoli (Apulia)

En la tradition of Monopoly (Apulia, Italy), it is said that the image of the Virgin, of a Byzantine type, came by sea in the year 1117 on a raft loaded with wooden beams, which would have served to complete the construction of the city cathedral. This tradition is part of the local pious account, transmitted in the memory of the people and in the spirituality of the diocese, but cannot be verified in all its historical details.

Main data

Origin and history

En la tradition of Monopoly (Apulia, Italy), it is said that the image of the Virgin, of a Byzantine type, came by sea in the year 1117 on a raft loaded with wooden beams, which would have served to complete the construction of the city cathedral. This tradition is part of the local pious account, transmitted in the memory of the people and in the spirituality of the diocese, but cannot be verified in all its historical details.

En la documented history, Madonna della Madia is firmly linked to the city of Monopoly (Bari, Apulia)where his image is venerated in the basilica-concatedral local as a patron of the city. The devotion is attested to in the ecclesiastical and civil documentation of the region of Apulia and is officially recognized as a patronal advocation of Monopoly (Italy). It does not appear in academic or pastoral lists of Marian advocations specific to Colombia, nor in repertories of popular Marian religious Colombian.

So far, in accessible Colombian ecclesial sources, in studies on popular religiosity in Colombia, or in repertory of existing Marian advocacy in the country, no consta that there is an official translation of this advocation as the patron of a Colombian municipality called Monopoly, nor the erection of a Marian sanctuary under this title in Colombia.

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The image and the sanctuary

En Monopoli (Italia), the image of Madonna della Madia is described in tradition as a Byzantine style icon, that is, a table painted with the representation of the Virgin and the Child, of characteristic features of the Eastern Christian art. The stories highlight his miraculous arrival by sea on a raft with wooden beams intended for the cathedral, although the technical details (exact type of wood, workshop of origin, author) are not critically documented in the accessible sources.

The main place of his veneration is the basilica-concatedral of Monopoly (Italy), which also serves as a diocesan cathedral and local Marian sanctuary. This church is the center of the liturgical life of the city and of the celebrations in honor of the patron. There is no record of a basilica, concatedral or sanctuary officially recognized under the title of Our Lady of Madia in Colombia.

Por tanto, para el contexto colombiano: – No consta una imagen oficialmente reconocida como “Nuestra Señora de la Madia” en un santuario mariano nacional o diocesano. – No consta a temple with a title of a minor basilica or national sanctuary dedicated to this advocation in Colombia.

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Sponsorship and coronation

In the tradition and documents concerning Monopoly, Italy, Madonna della Madia is recognized as patron of the city and his diocese. Devotion is solidly integrated into the religious and cultural identity of that town.

As for the canonical coronation, sources point out that the image was crowned in the year 1958 in Monopoly (Italy), as an official recognition of the importance of this devotion for the diocese and the faithful people. The name of the Pontiff who granted the decree or of the delegate who made the rite has not been found in the consulted sources, so it is not possible to specify it with certainty without incurring conjectures; only the Year de la coronación.

Respecto a Colombia: – No consta que Madonna della Madia haya sido proclamada patrona de ningún municipio, diócesis o jurisdicción eclesiástica del país. – No documented canonical coronation in Colombian territory related to this advocation.

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Party and devotion

In Monopoly, Italy, the liturgical and popular tradition celebrates Madonna della Madia with two dates: 16 December (main memory, linked to the arrival of the raft) and 14 Augustwith religious and popular celebrations of the city. These parties include celebration of the Eucharist, processions and acts of Marian piety characteristic of local religiosity.

The documentation consulted on Marian popular devotion in Colombia makes no mention of festivals, pilgrimages, or large gatherings of the faithful associated with Our Lady of La Madia. This Marian devotion is not among the most common in the country, where others predominate, such as Our Lady of Chiquinquirá, Our Lady of Candelaria, Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Our Lady of Health, and Our Lady of Remedies, among many others.

Por consiguiente, para el contexto colombiano: – No consta una fiesta litúrgica propia ni peregrinaciones masivas oficialmente asociadas a Nuestra Señora de la Madia. – No consta a specific popular tradition (processions, novenas, promises, religious fairs) consolidated around this apvocation in Colombia.

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Link to the Rosary

The sources do not mention a specific link between the advocation of Madonna della Madia and the prayer of Rosary as a characteristic of this devotion. There are no particular apparitions, promises or messages related to the Rosary similar to those associated, for example, to Our Lady of Fatima or to other explicitly rosarian advocacy.

However, in general, in Catholic spirituality, every Marian advocation can be accompanied and deepened by the prayer of Holy Rosarywhich the Church presents as one of the most solidly rooted devotions in the Christian people. The Rosary allows us to contemplate, in communion with Mary, the mysteries of Christ's life, and can be integrated in an organic way into the expressions of love and request entrusted to the Virgin, also in those aspirations where there is no explicit historical relationship with this prayer.

Applied to the devotion to Our Lady of the Madia (in its original context of Monopoli, Italy), the Rosary offers a path to: – Meditate on the mysteries of salvation in the company of the Mother of God. – Implore her protection for coastal and seafaring communities, given the powerful symbolism of the icon arriving by sea. – Integrate this specific devotion into the great universal current of Marian prayer that unites all the faithful who pray the Rosary in the Church.