Shrine of Nostra Signora della Guardia is a Roman Catholic place of pilgrimage located on the top of Monte Figogna in the Municipality of Ceranesi, Liguria, Italy. According to tradition, on August 29, 1490, the Virgin Mary appeared to a peasant called Benedetto Pareto and asked him to build a chapel on the mountain. Pareto was surprised and replied that he was only a poor man and would not be able to do that. But the Virgin Mary exhorted him by saying “Do not be afraid!”
Nevertheless, Pareto went home and did not tell anyone about the apparition. A few days later, he fell from a tree and was seriously injured. The Virgin Mary appeared to him again and he was miraculously healed. The event convinced him to speak about the apparition and to seek help to build the chapel.
The shrine is the destination of pilgrims from Genoa and from and all over Italy. The cult has been spread throughout Italy and far beyond, so that many churches and shrines have been dedicated to Nostra Signora della Guardia.
Shrine of Nostra Signora della Guardia is a Roman Catholic place of pilgrimage located on the top of Monte Figogna in the Municipality of Ceranesi, Liguria, Italy. According to tradition, on August 29, 1490, the Virgin Mary appeared to a peasant called Benedetto Pareto and asked him to build a chapel on the mountain. Pareto was surprised and replied that he was only a poor man and would not be able to do that. But the Virgin Mary exhorted him by saying “Do not be afraid!”
Nevertheless, Pareto went home and did not tell anyone about the apparition. A few days later, he fell from a tree and was seriously injured. The Virgin Mary appeared to him again and he was miraculously healed. The event convinced him to speak about the apparition and to seek help to build the chapel.
The shrine is the destination of pilgrims from Genoa and from and all over Italy. The cult has been spread throughout Italy and far beyond, so that many churches and shrines have been dedicated to Nostra Signora della Guardia.