Santa María de los Angeles de la Porciuncula

Marian Advocation of Assisi (Umbria)

La advocación de Santa María de los Angeles de la Porciuncula was born together with the small oratory of the Porciuncula, an ancient iglesite mentioned in a document of 1045, preserved in the archives of the Cathedral of San Rufino de Assis. This chapel, dedicated to the Virgin, was entrusted by the Benedictine monks to Saint Francis, who made it a "mother house" of the nascent Franciscan fraternity and place where his evangelical life form was consolidated. There is also the origin of the Indulgence of the Forgiveness of Assisi (or indulgence of the Porciuncula), granted in 1216 by Pope Honorio III at the request of Saint Francis, and initially linked to the visit to this church between the afternoon of 1 and 2 August.

Main data

Origin and history

La advocación de Santa María de los Angeles de la Porciuncula was born together with the small oratory of the Porciuncula, an ancient iglesite mentioned in a document of 1045, preserved in the archives of the Cathedral of San Rufino de Assis. This chapel, dedicated to the Virgin, was entrusted by the Benedictine monks to Saint Francis, who made it a "mother house" of the nascent Franciscan fraternity and place where his evangelical life form was consolidated. There is also the origin of the Indulgence of the Forgiveness of Assisi (or indulgence of the Porciuncula), granted in 1216 by Pope Honorio III at the request of Saint Francis, and initially linked to the visit to this church between the afternoon of 1 and 2 August.

According to the Franciscan traditionIn the Porciuncula San Francisco, he would have had a mystical experience in which Christ and the Virgin granted him the grace of great forgiveness for all who came to this place to repent. These devout accounts highlight Mary's maternal protection of Francis and his brothers, and present the Virgin as Queen of the Angels and Lady of the Porciuncula, especially linked to mercy and conversion. The historical documentation, for its part, confirms the link of indulgence with the Porciuncula, its approval by Honorio III and its subsequent extension to Franciscan temples and then to every parish church on specified dates, although without accurately attesting to all the legendary details of the visions.

The image and the sanctuary

At the origin of the holiday of Santa Maria de los Angeles does not contain a concrete and miraculous image that has motivated his institution. The tradition focuses more on the church dedicated to the Virgin and in the spiritual experience of Saint Francis that in a given iconography. In the Franciscan field, the representations of this advocation often show Mary as Queen of the Angels, often enthroned and surrounded by angels, but the sources consulted expressly point out that for this feast "we have no news of any apparition, nor is there an image determined by whose fame this feast has been instituted."

El reference sanctuary of this advocation is the Basílica Papal de Santa María degli Angeli in Porziuncola, in the town of Santa María degli Angeli, municipality of Assisi (Umbria, Italy). It is a great 16th century basilica that Inside the small church of the Porciuncula, true spiritual heart of Franciscan and place where St. Francis lived with his first brothers. The Porcíuncula and the basilica, along with other Franciscan places of Assisi, were declared UNESCO World Heritage Site 2000as a set of sites linked to the life of Saint Francis and the Order of the Minor Brothers. As for the specific location in "Assisi, department of Umbria, Colombia"no verifiable sources have been found to describe a Marian sanctuary with this apvocation in Colombia; it could be a local or parish denomination, but no consta documented information on this subject in the sources consulted.

Sponsorship and coronation

Santa María de los Angeles de la Porciuncula is intimately linked to the Franciscan family as a whole, which celebrates this advocation as one of its main Marian parties. The Porciuncula is considered "source of Franciscan" and "clean source of the forgiveness of Assisi," so that the Virgin under this title enjoys a very strong spiritual patronage over the Order of the Minor Friars and the other Franciscan branches. Various places in the world have taken the name of Porciuncula or Santa María de los Angeles in their toponymy and ecclesial life, but in terms of specifically official patterns (city, diocese or nation)the general sources consulted do not detail particular canonical appointments linked to this advocation beyond the Franciscan sphere.

About a canonical coronation specific to the image of Santa María de los Angeles de la Porciuncula, the sources consulted (history of the sanctuary, Franciscan documents, encyclopedic synthesis and Catholic dissemination materials) do not mention a documented canonical coronation of a concrete image associated with this party. The following should therefore be noted in accordance with the above rule: does not contain a documented canonical coronation.

Party and devotion

La main party of Santa María de los Angeles de la Porciuncula is celebrated the August 2, date linked to the dedication of the chapel and the solemn opening of the indulgence of the Forgiveness of Assisi. This celebration, also called the "feast of the Porciuncula" or "Forgiveness of Assisi," is extended in the universal Church and appears in various liturgical calendars, especially in those of the Franciscan family. Liturgically, memory highlights Mary as Queen of the Angels and Mother of mercy, particularly associated with the experience of conversion and reconciliation that is lived in the Porciuncula.

From the institution of indulgence in 1216, the devoción popular has been marked by the influx of pilgrims to the Porciuncula to obtain the forgiveness of Assisi. Initially indulgence was only won between the afternoon of 1 and 2 August, but later it was extended to all the Franciscan churches and then to each parish church, retaining as a main reference on 2 August. Today the indulgence of the Porciuncula can be obtained, in the usual conditions for a plenary indulgence (sacramental confession, Eucharistic communion, prayer for the Pope's intentions and visit to a church with recitation of the Father and the Creed), both for himself and for the deceased. For the specific case of Assisi (Umbria) in Colombiathe accessible sources do not provide data on local pilgrimages, influx or traditions around this advocation; therefore, no constan documented details at the local Colombian level.

Link to the Rosary

The sources consulted point out that the feast of Santa María de los Angeles de la Porciuncula is born from the dedication of a church and the intervention of St. Francis, without being linked to a specific Marian apparition or to a given image. The revised documentation does not contain a explicit historical relationship between this advocation and the particular origin or dissemination of the prayer of the Rosary. It should therefore be stated that there is no specific historical link with the Rosary.

From a general Marian perspective, the prayer of Rosary It is deeply aligned with the spirituality of Santa Maria de los Angeles de la Porciuncula. The indulgence of the Forgiveness of Assisi highlights the conversion, confession and sacramental grace, and the Rosary, by meditating on the mysteries of Christ's life with Mary, leads to the same dynamics of penance, contemplation and trust in divine mercy. In the litany of the Rosary, Mary is invoked as "Queen of the Angels", a title that directly coincides with the theological content of this advocation and helps to understand it: the Porciuncula thus becomes a privileged place where the Queen of Angels accompanies the path of conversion of the faithful, who can sustain and deepen that grace through the constant prayer of the Rosary.