Our Lady Della Croce

 

 

 

 

Our Lady Della Croce

https://www.roman-catholic-saints.com/our-lady-della-croce.html


March 1
 
There is a sanctuary of the Madonna on Bergamo Road, about a mile away from city of Crema, Italy.
The structure is a circular form, with 4 additions in shape of a cross, which gave rise to name: “Holy Mary of the Cross,” or Our Lady Della Croce.
The sanctuary is located in a place where, in years gone by, there stood a dense little wood called “Il Novelletto.”

In late 15th century a young woman named Caterina Uberti lived with her brother in city of Crema.
When she arrived at marriageable age, her brother induced her to wed one Bartolomeo Petrobelli; it was an unfortunate arrangement – Caterina was good & pious; Bartolomeo was quite the opposite, tending toward wicked & corrupt.

The marriage was unhappy for Caterina & uncomfortable for Bartolomeo – his rather crude & brutal ways shamed her, while her refined & holy life was a silent reproach to his somewhat scandalous mode of living.

So, after a year of turmoil, Bartolomeo decided to kill Caterina.
Having made up his mind, he lost no time in carrying out his evil design.

He suggested that they journey to Bergamo & visit his parents; she agreed, & in late afternoon of April 3, 1490, they mounted their horses & set forth from city.
When they arrived at wood about a mile from Crema, Bartolomeo left highway & rode into forest; Caterina was puzzled, but not knowing what else to do, followed him.

When they reached middle of wood, Bartolomeo dismounted & made Caterina get down from her horse.

Then, without warning, he drew his sword, raised it & fiercely brought it down, intending to split her head with one clean cut.

Instinctively she drew up her arm to ward off savage blow, saved her head, but lost her right hand – the poor severed hand hung from stump of her arm by a strip of skin, & Bartolomeo brutally tore it off & flung it to one side.
He then slashed at her like a maniac until she fell to ground in a pool of blood; thinking her dead, he leaped on his horse & fled.

Caterina wasn't dead, nor was she afraid to die, though she felt her time was short.
With all her dying heart she wished for Last Sacraments; so she prayed to Mother of God, who heard her prayer.
A glow of light pushed back gathering darkness & a beautiful lady approached her.

Reaching down, the Lady, Our Lady Della Croce, took her by arm & helped her rise – blood stopped flowing & new life coursed through her mutilated body.

The Lady bade Caterina follow her, but Caterina asked if she might look for her lost hand.
The Lady promised it would be returned to her in due time.
Taking Caterina to a hut, she told her these people would help her & then vanished.

The kind peasants did all they could for Caterina, & next morning they placed her on a rude stretcher &  tenderly carried her back to Crema.

As they passed through wood, one of men found severed hand & returned it to Caterina.
They took her to Church of St Benedetto, where pastor, after hearing story, anointed Caterina who died there.
The story spread rapidly; some believed, others doubted that Blessed Virgin worked such wonders.

An 11 year old boy, living in Crema plagued with an unhealable abscess on a foot, begged to be taken to wood to put his foot on spot where Lady appeared.
His mother & a group of relatives carried him there, &  he was instantly cured, all abscess traces gone.

Many other sick & infirm came also & were cured.
The people erected a small chapel on spot & placed in it a plaster image of Our Lady.
More favors followed; many offerings were made by faithful & in a few years a fitting sanctuary to the Madonna was completed by 1500.

Later a fine new statue of Mary was enshrined in Sanctuary & in 1873 Our Lady Della Croce was crowned with a golden crown by order of Vatican.

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http://devotiontoourlady.com/march.html

There is a sanctuary of the Madonna on the Bergamo Road, about a mile away from the city of Crema, Italy. The structure is a circular form, with 4 additions in the shape of a cross, which gave rise to the name: “Holy Mary of the Cross,” or Our Lady Della Croce. The sanctuary is located in a place where, in years gone by, there stood a dense little wood called “Il Novelletto.”

In the late 15th century a young woman named Caterina Uberti lived with her brother in the city of Crema. When she arrived at marriageable age, her brother induced her to wed one Bartolomeo Petrobelli; it was an unfortunate arrangement – Caterina was good & pious; Bartolomeo was quite the opposite, tending toward the wicked & corrupt. The marriage was unhappy for Caterina & uncomfortable for Bartolomeo – his rather crude & brutal ways shamed her, while her refined & holy life was a silent reproach to his somewhat scandalous mode of living.

So, after a year of turmoil, Bartolomeo decided to kill Caterina. Having made up his mind, he lost no time in carrying out his evil design.

He suggested that they journey to Bergamo & visit his parents; she agreed, & in the late afternoon of April 3, 1490, they mounted their horses & set forth from the city. When they arrived at the wood about a mile from Crema, Bartolomeo left the highway & rode into the forest; Caterina was puzzled, but not knowing what else to do, followed him. When they reached the middle of the wood, Bartolomeo dismounted & made Caterina get down from her horse.

Then, without warning, he drew his sword, raised it & fiercely brought it down, intending to split her head with one clean cut. Instinctively she drew up her arm to ward off the savage blow, saved her head, but lost her right hand – the poor severed hand hung from the stump of her arm by a strip of skin, & Bartolomeo brutally tore it off & flung it to one side. He then slashed at her like a maniac until she fell to the ground in a pool of blood; thinking her dead, he leaped on his horse & fled.

Caterina wasn't dead, nor was she afraid to die, though she felt her time was short. With all her dying heart she wished for the Last Sacraments; so she prayed to the Mother of God, who heard her prayer. A glow of light pushed back the gathering darkness & a beautiful lady approached her. Reaching down, the Lady, Our Lady Della Croce, took her by the arm & helped her rise – the blood stopped flowing & new life coursed through her mutilated body.

The Lady bade Caterina follow her, but Caterina asked if she might look for her lost hand. The Lady promised it would be returned to her in due time. Taking Caterina to a hut, she told her these people would help her & then vanished. The kind peasants did all they could for Caterina, & the next morning they placed her on a rude stretcher & tenderly carried her back to Crema.

As they passed through the wood, one of the men found the severed hand & returned it to Caterina. They took her to the Church of St Benedetto, where the pastor, after hearing the story, anointed Caterina who died there. The story spread rapidly; some believed, others doubted that the Blessed Virgin worked such wonders.

An 11 year old boy, living in Crema plagued with an unhealable abscess on a foot, begged to be taken to the wood to put his foot on the spot where the Lady appeared. His mother & a group of relatives carried him there, & he was instantly cured, all abscess traces gone.

Many other sick & infirm came also & were cured. The people erected a small chapel on the spot & placed in it a plaster image of Our Lady. More favors followed; many offerings were made by the faithful & in a few years a fitting sanctuary to the Madonna was completed by 1500. Later a fine new statue of Mary was enshrined in the Sanctuary & in 1873 Our Lady Della Croce was crowned with a golden crown by order of the Vatican.