Pope Leo XIV made a surprise visit on Saturday to the tomb of his predecessor, Pope Francis, at Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome.
Before that visit, Robert Prevost also went on Saturday afternoon to the sanctuary of the Mother of Good Counsel in Genazzano, a town of 6,000 inhabitants 60 kilometers from Rome, closely linked to Marian tradition and Augustinian spirituality. The Pontiff prayed for several minutes in front of the image while the neighbors crowded at the doors of the basilica, with which Robert Prevost has a special connection and where he had already been last year when he was a cardinal.
"Our town keeps a vivid and deep memory of his presence last year, during the Feast of the Arrival, when he stopped in prayer before the sacred image of the Mother of Good Counsel," read a statement issued by the small Town Hall after being elected as Pope.
"Throughout history, the Augustinian community has made a decisive contribution to the spiritual, cultural, and charitable life of the people," can be read on the website dedicated to the sanctuary. "The care of the liturgy, the rich preaching to the people, and the prayer opportunities for pilgrims from around the world have transmitted the rich spirituality of St. Augustine."
"The Augustinians have been present in Genazzano since 1284", can be read on the website dedicated to the sanctuary, erected "thanks to the generosity of the Colonna family," which in 1356 entrusted the care of the parish to the Augustinians, with the approval of the cardinal bishop of Palestine.
Around 1460, a widow named Petruccia di Nocera, a devout Augustinian, renovated and expanded the church by investing all the money she had. The work was interrupted due to lack of funds, but in 1467 what locals consider a miracle happened: an image of the Virgin appeared as if fallen from the sky on a wall of the half-built church.
Miracles continued to occur, and the place began to attract pilgrims from around the world. Among them, two Albanians pointed out that the image was identical to the one venerated in Scutari, in their country. The name of the Feast of the Arrival, celebrated every April 25, refers precisely to the mysterious and sudden appearance of the image of the Virgin with the child Jesus.
The then Cardinal Robert Prevost joined the celebration on April 25, 2024, and as a good Augustinian, he has felt a special connection to the place ever since, where he wanted to return to pray just two days after being invested as the 267th Pontiff of the Catholic Church. His visit is the second show of closeness to the faithful in 48 hours, following the greeting at the doors of the Holy Office palace, and it occurs a day before the Regina Coeli prayer in St. Peter's Square.