Our Lady of the Snow of Tekije

Marian Invocation of Petrovaradin (Voivodin)

According to local tradition, on the hill of Vezirac, next to Tekije, there was from the Middle Ages a sanctuary dedicated to the Virgin Mary, destroyed by the Ottomans in the 16th century and replaced by a small mosque and a tekke (road inn linked to Sufi Islam). This tradition states that the place somehow maintained its sacred character for both creeds, until the Ottoman withdrawal after the Treaty of Karlowitz (1699), when the mosque was converted into a small Catholic church.

Main data

Origin and history

According to local tradition, on the hill of Vezirac, next to Tekije, there was from the Middle Ages a sanctuary dedicated to the Virgin Mary, destroyed by the Ottomans in the 16th century and replaced by a small mosque and a tekke (road inn linked to Sufi Islam). This tradition states that the place somehow maintained its sacred character for both creeds, until the Ottoman withdrawal after the Treaty of Karlowitz (1699), when the mosque was converted into a small Catholic church.

The documented history places in this same place the battle of Petrovaradin, on August 5, 1716, in which Prince Eugene of Savoy, under the command of the troops of the Habsburg Monarchy, won a decisive victory over the Ottoman army led by the great visir Damad Ali Pachá. That day coincides with the liturgical feast of Santa Maria la Mayor / Our Lady of the Snow in the Roman calendar. According to the local legend, that August 5 would have fallen snow or an unusual precipitation "like snow" in the middle of the summer, interpreted by the soldiers as a sign of the protection of the Virgin, which would have strengthened the dedication of the place to Our Lady of the Snows.

Since then, the Teije shrine has been linked to the memory of the victory of 1716 and to the action of thanks to the Virgin for the protection of Christians against the Ottoman advance. The Latin Catholic community of the area, in the surroundings of Petrovaradin (now part of Novi Sad, Voivodina, Serbia), was consolidating there an important Marian pilgrimage centre, which would eventually be known as the main Marian Catholic sanctuary of Serbia.

The image and the sanctuary

The temple is known as Church of Our Lady of the Snow of Tekije (or Church of the Virgin of the Snow in Tekija). It is a Latin rite Catholic church, described as "the largest Marian church in Serbia," located at the exit of Petrovaradin, next to the Novi Sad- Belgrade road. Architectural, the sources present it as a "typical Roman Catholic" church, with a simple façade, a bell-tower and a unique ship, without indication of specific rank as a minor basilica or a formal declaration as a national sanctuary; in practice, it is considered the country's main Marian sanctuary.

A very unique feature of the building is that in its outer structure they are seen simultaneously a cruz y una half moon, recalling that in the same place there existed successively a Christian sanctuary and a mosque with tekke. This detail highlights the shared history of the site and its dimension as a meeting point - and also a memorial - between Christians and Muslims in the region.

On the image concrete of Our Lady of the Snow venerated inside, the sources consulted are limited to showing photographs of the temple and to mentioning the advocation, without providing reliable data on the type of image (sculpture or icon, material, style or iconographic details). Therefore, no consta in accessible sources a documented description of the headline image or its specific iconography.

Sponsorship and coronation

Various sources of Catholic background present Our Lady of the Snow of Tekije as the the main Marian Catholic sanctuary of Serbia, which in fact indicates a special devotional link with the Catholic community of the country. However, No official that the Virgin of Tekije has been proclaimed a canonical patron of a city, diocese or the whole nation by a liturgical decree or a legal act clearly documented in the sources consulted.

As regards a possible canonical coronation of the image (by the mandate of the Holy See or the competent ecclesiastical authority), the available sources do not mention any coronation ceremony or provide official dates or data. It should therefore be stated that: does not contain a documented canonical coronation of Our Lady of the Snow of Tekije.

Party and devotion

La main party in Tekije is celebrated the 5 August, coinciding with the liturgical memory of Our Lady of the Snow / Santa Maria la Mayor in the Roman calendar. This date is closely linked both to the Roman tradition of the "Virgin of the Snow" and to the memory of the battle of Petrovaradin of 1716, which was fought precisely on August 5.

The shrine of Tekije is described as a place of great Marian pilgrimageespecially around that date, when Catholic faithful come from various parts of Serbia and from neighbouring countries. The influx is favored by the accessibility of the temple, located next to an important way of communication. The sources consulted do not provide precise numbers of attendees, but they do agree to present it as the main focus of Marian Catholic devotion in the country, with masses, processions and celebrations in honor of the Virgin of the Snow.

The devotion is articulated around the memory grateful for the protection of the Virgin in times of conflict and for the perseverance of the Latin Catholic faith in a region of complex religious and political history. The faithful come to Tekije to ask for the intercession of Mary for peace, coexistence between peoples and religions and for personal and family needs.

Link to the Rosary

The specific sources on the Teije shrine do not document a historical relationship or particular privilege of this advocation with the prayer of Rosary (for example, a historical fellowship of the Rosary, an apparition linked to this prayer or an official title related to the Rosary).

However, to be the main Marian Catholic sanctuary of Serbiathe practice of the Rosary is naturally present in the devotional life of the place, as Marian prayer par excellence of the Latin Church. Current initiatives of prayer, such as chains of rosaries offered "by Serbia" in honor of Our Lady of the Snow of Tekije, show how the Rosary becomes a privileged means to accompany this devotion, to ask Mary's intercession for peace, for fidelity to faith and for reconciliation between communities.

From a general Marian perspective, the Rosary allows us to contemplate, together with Our Lady of the Snow of Teije, the mysteries of Christ that illuminate the moments of trial and victory of the Church: in the glorious mysteries we recognize the hope that it held Christians in the battle of Petrovaradin, and in the joyful and luminous mysteries we ask for the evangelization and coexistence of the peoples who are now pilgriming the sanctuary. In this way, the Rosary is integrated in an organic and natural way into the spirituality of this Marian advocation.