Our Lady of the Snows

Marian Advocation of Belleville (Illinois)

On the devotion to Our Lady of the Snow in Belleville (Illinois, United States)in the sanctuary known as National Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows, there are no official data that historically link this sanctuary to the town of Belleville in the department of Illinois in Colombia; these are two different realities: a national Marian sanctuary in the United States and a Colombian municipality. There is no Marian national sanctuary of Our Lady of the Snow in Belleville (Illinois Department, Colombia) with similar characteristics to that of Belleville (Illinois, USA).

Main data

Origin and history

On the devotion to Our Lady of the Snow in Belleville (Illinois, United States)in the sanctuary known as National Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows, there are no official data that historically link this sanctuary to the town of Belleville in the department of Illinois in Colombia; these are two different realities: a national Marian sanctuary in the United States and a Colombian municipality. There is no Marian national sanctuary of Our Lady of the Snow in Belleville (Illinois Department, Colombia) with similar characteristics to that of Belleville (Illinois, USA).

La Invocation of Our Lady of the Snow It is, on the other hand, of very old and universal origin in the Church. According to the tradition common to the Church, spread by works of dissemination and Catholic sites, dates back to the fourth century and is linked to the miracle of an extraordinary snow in Rome, in the middle of the summer, around the year 358, during the pontificate of Pope Liberio (352-366). In this tradition, the Virgin would have thus pointed out the place where the Basilica of St. Mary the Major would be built. This narrative belongs to the field of tradition / pious legendwithout contemporary documentation to the so-called miracle.

As for the documented history of the advocationit can be said with certainty that in the first centuries the Church of Rome venerated the Virgin under the title linked to the icon of the Salus Populi Romani, preserved in Santa Maria la Mayor. The liturgical feast of Our Lady of the Snow is celebrated 5 August, memory of the dedication of this basilica; it was extended to the universal Church, and various sources point out that St. Pius V promoted it in the 17th century. The advocation has spread widely in Italy, Spain, Latin America and Portugal, with numerous local sanctuaries and patronings.

They do not contain, in accessible and verified sources, specific historical data on the development of this advocation in Belleville (department of Illinois, Colombia), different from the general framework of devotion to Our Lady of the Snow in Colombia and in Latin America.

The image and the sanctuary

In the specific case of Belleville (departamento de Illinois, Colombia), there is no documented Marian image of Our Lady of the Snow with official description (type, material, iconography) or a diocesan or national sanctuary with that title. There are no clear references in diocesan, national or Catholic press sources to a relevant Marian temple or sanctuary with this advocation in that locality. Therefore, no consta a secure description of the image or an official Marian shrine of Our Lady of the Snow in Belleville (Illinois Department, Colombia).

The advocation, in the broad sense, is often represented in Christian art as an image of the Virgin Mary with the Child Jesus, often linked to the Basilica of St. Mary the Major or with symbolic allusions to the snow, although these iconographic features can vary much from region to region. This data is general and cannot be applied safely to a specific image in Belleville (Department of Illinois, Colombia).

Sponsorship and coronation

At the universal level, Our Lady of the Snow exercises multiple Local level: cities, dioceses, parishes and regions, especially in Spain and in Latin America (for example, patronings on cities in Argentina, Spain, Mexico and Venezuela, among others).

However, no constain verified sources, that Our Lady of the Snow is officially patron of the city or municipality of Belleville (departamento de Illinois, Colombia)nor that there is a specific canonical decree that declares her patron of the corresponding diocese under that name.

As for a canonical coronation of an image of Our Lady of the Snow in Belleville (Illinois Department, Colombia), does not contain a documented canonical coronation.

Party and devotion

La litigation fiesta general of Our Lady of the Snow is celebrated the 5 August in the Roman calendar, as a memory of the dedication of the Basilica of St. Mary the Major. In many countries of Spanish tradition, solemn masses, processions, romaneries and pilgrimages are celebrated on that day to shrines and parishes where the Virgin is venerated under this advocation.

In Colombia, devotion to Our Lady of the Snow is present in various parishes and localities, with festive celebrations on August 5, although the extent and concrete form of the parties varies according to the region. They do not contain, with the required accuracy, data on specific inflow, pilgrimages or popular traditions in Belleville (Illinois, Colombia) under this Marian title. If there are local celebrations, their specific description does not appear in the sources consulted in a sufficiently clear and documented manner.

Link to the Rosary

In the sources consulted on the advocation of Our Lady of the Snow in general, and on its dissemination in Latin America, there is no specific, historical or legal link between this advocation and a particular fellowship or devotion of the Rosary (for example, as a patron of the Rosary's cofradies or associated with promises linked to the prayer of mysteries).

However, as every Marian advocation fully inserted into the life of the Church, devotion to Our Lady of the Snow is naturally integrated into the spirituality of the Holy Rosary. The Rosary allows us to contemplate, together with Mary, the mysteries of Christ, and thus the advocation of Our Lady of the Snow is illuminated, for example:

– En los joyful mysteries, al contemplar la maternidad de María, que en esta advocación se muestra como Madre solícita que protege a su pueblo. – En los light and painful mysteries, al meditar la docilidad de María al designio de Dios, significada simbólicamente por la nieve que purifica y renueva. – En los glorious mysteries, by contemplating Mary glorified, Queen of heaven, a title that relates to the spiritual history of the Basilica of St. Mary the Major and to the proclamation of Mary as Queen by the pontiffs.

Thus, even if there is no particular historical link with the Rosary, this advocation is lived in a full and fruitful way when Marian piety feeds on the faithful prayer of the Rosary, joining Mary in contemplating the mystery of Christ and asking for his intercession under the title of Our Lady of the Snows.