Sanctuary of Our Lady of Gietrzwałd

19 years after the apparitions at Lourdes, 13 year old Justyna Szafryńska and 12 year old Barbara Samulowska, both from poor Polish families, were spoken to by Our Lady in Polish, across 160 apparitions from 27 June to 16 September 1877. Our Lady first appeared to 13 year old Justyna when returning from an examination required for her First Holy Communion. She notes seeing a bright light and a figure dressed in white seated on a gold, pearl-studded throne in a maple tree, accompanied by a glowing angel, while the evening Angelus bells rang throughout. At the sight, Justyna prayed the Hail Mary, and the figure rose from the throne and ascended into heaven together with the angel. The following day, Barbara joined Justyna to pray the rosary, and saw 'The Bright Lady' on a throne with the Infant Jesus among angels above the maple tree at the church. The girls asked, "Who are you?" and she replied, "I am the Blessed Virgin Mary of the Immaculate Conception." They then asked her, "What do you demand, Mother of God?" and she answered, "I wish that you pray the rosary every day!".

The children asked Our Lady many other questions, including "Will the Church in the Kingdom of Poland be liberated?" and "Will the orphaned parishes in southern Warmia soon receive priests?" Each time, the answer they got was, "Yes, if people pray diligently, then the Church will not be persecuted, and the orphaned parishes will receive priests!"

Justyna, being the oldest of the two, recounted everything of the apparitions to the parish priest of the church in Gietrzwałd, and Fr. Augustyn Weichsel told her to revisit the place on the following day. Again, the Angelus bells rang and the maple tree was illuminated with light. A golden circle appeared around it with a throne of gold, as two angels escorted Our Lady to the throne. When she sat down, two of the other angels brought the Baby Jesus, who was described to be in a 'heavenly glow' and holding an Orb in his left hand, and sat him on her left knee. Other angels brought a crown and placed it on his head. Then another angel brought him a spectre and placed it in his right arm. An angel hovered above this scene for the duration, pointing to a cross.

On the 30th of June, Our Lady was seen on her own, by Justyna and Barbara. Justyna asked, “What do you want, Holy Mary?” Our Lady replied, “I want you to pray the Rosary daily.” She spoke in the local dialect, which was quite similar to Polish.

On the 1st of July, Justyna once more asked “Who are You?” and heard, “I am the Blessed Virgin Mary of Immaculate Conception.” Throughout July, the children were visited by Our Lady during the evening Rosary. They also asked the Lady about the health and salvation of certain people, and if the Church in Poland would be liberated as they asked at the beginning of the apparitions. They also wanted to know if new priests would soon be assigned to the parishes in south Warmia, abandoned due to the Kulturkampf. They received the exact answer as before.

Word of mouth about the apparitions attracted numerous pilgrims to Gietrzwałd. The first news about the apparitions was published by the Pielgrzym newspaper, issued in Pelplin in 1877. The three-day celebrations of the September 8 feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary attracted as many as 50,000 faithful to Gietrzwałd.

On the feast, Our Lady blessed a spring. Pilgrims have for years drawn water from it and healings have been reported. While the apparitions contributed to the revival of a Polish national spirit, in the religious sense they had a universal appeal, and the apparitions were seen as a powerful sign, a symbol of the defense of both Catholics and the Polish community.

Following the apparitions, both the visionaries entered the religious congregation of the Daughters of Charity (of St. Vincent de Paul), first in Chełmno and then in Paris.

On September 1, 1977, centennial celebrations took place, presided over by the future John Paul II, then known as Cardinal Karol Wojtyła, the metropolitan archbishop of Krakow at the time. On that day Bishop Józef Drzazga of Warmia solemnly recognized the veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Gietrzwałd. He issued a decree validating the credibility of the apparitions and proclaiming them as in compliance with Christian faith and morality.

The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Gietrzwałd is also known as the Basilica of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Gietrzwałd.