WHY OUR LADY
16TH CENTURY - 1578 - OUR LADY OF LEZAJSK
LEZAJSK, POLAND
VISIONARY: Thomas Michalek
NUMBER OF APPARITIONS: 3
FIRST APPARITION: 1578
LAST APPARITION: 1578
APPROVED: 1635; 1752
“Thomas, I chose this place.
Here my Son will be loved and respected
and whosoever shall call upon my intercession,
will receive my blessings.”
SUMMARY
The second of Our Lady’s approved apparitions, at Lezazjsk, Poland in the 16th century, was sandwiched between two seemingly more significant apparitions, at Guadalupe, Mexico, and Quito, Ecuador. This time, Our Lady appeared to a “woodcutter” named Thomas Michalek.
Our Lady’s words to Thomas were: “Thomas, I chose this place. Here my Son will be loved and respected and whosoever shall call upon my intercession, will receive my blessings.”
Our Lady also asked Thomas to alert the authorities so that he might have a church built. At many of the following approved apparitions over the centuries, Our Lady would also ask to have a church built. And, Our Lady’s requests to have churches built have always been honored, as this one was at Lezajsk.
At first a small wooden chapel was built. As the numbers of pious people gathered at the holy place grew and grew, a larger church was needed as Our Lady, the Queen of Heaven, heard their prayers and proved faithful to her promise.
Early in the 17th century, a magnificent shrine with a monastery attached to it was built to replace the wooden chapel. And, Our Lady continued to reward the people with her favors.
THE APPARITIONS
In 1578, Thomas Michalek, through a forest, saw a bright light, in which the Holy Virgin manifested herself. Speaking to him, the Virgin Mary said: "Thomas, I chose this place. Here my Son will be loved and respected and whosoever shall call upon my intercession, will receive my blessing."
Our Lady asked Thomas to alert the authorities so that he might build a church. However, because he was a very humble man, deemed himself unworthy of such a heavenly vision, and fearing some diabolical illusion, he kept the revelation secret.
Our Lady appeared to him again and told him to put an end to his silence and announce what he had seen and heard; however, he still did nothing.
Finally, Our Lady appeared to Thomas a third time and scolded him for not following her instructions. After this he did relate his story to fellow villagers, but was afraid to approach the bishop. He did inform the rulers of the city but they did not believe him. Even his parish Priest refused to believe him. Thomas was actually thrown into prison and subsequently released.
AFTER THE APPARITION(S)
Chapel
Soon, the people of the neighborhood began to gather together at the site of the apparitions, and the Queen of Heaven, faithful to her promise, heard their pious prayers. Not long thereafter, it happened that another dweller in this place, Sebastian Talarczyk, who was tending his cattle near the spot whee the cross stood, saw the Blessed Virgin clad in white and surrounded by a great light. He went immediately to the city and informed the ecclesiastical authorities of what he had seen. On the death of the curate, the new parish priest went to the site clothed with his priestly garments and with a great procession. A small wooden chapel was soon built at the site under the invocation of St. Ann.
Shrine
In the year 1606, the bishop of the diocese, Maciej Pstrokonski, Bishop of Przemysl (1601-1608), seeing that the small wooden chapel could not contain the worshippers of the Blessed Virgin who went to that place, with the help of the pious king, Sigismund III, had built a magnificent shrine there with a monastery attached to it; and he brought to that place the Fathers of St. Bernard.
Miraculous Image
An artist from the city, Father Erasus, who was very devout to the Immaculate Conception, was brought from the city to the church to produce an image of Our Lady of Lezajsk (Our Lady of Consolation), and with Her assistance, he did produce a wonderful achievement. From that time, the people, who were very devout to the Immaculate Virgin, went in crowds to Lezajsk, principally on the day of her feast; and Our Holy Mother rewarded them liberally with her favors, in proof whereof are numerous votive offerings suspended around her image.
Approval
After a canonical investigation, the bishop of the diocese, Henry Firlej, Bishop of Przemysl (1631-1635) confirmed the supernatural origin of the miracle.
On the 8th of September, 1752, Pope Benedict XIV, a great servant of Mary, gave leave to crown the miraculous image, thus satisfying the requests of the clergy, the nobility and the pious people. The Bishop of Przemysl, Waclaw Hieronim Sierakowski (1742-1760), in the midst of a large body of clergy and surrounded by the Polish nobility and an innumerable throng of the faithful, performed the solemn ceremony and personally blessed the crown.
All the outlay for increasing the splendor of this solemnity was furnished by Joseph Potocki, who also at his own expense purchased two golden crowns for the image. The crowns were blessed by Pope Benedict XIV. But the pious Hetman did not live to see the coronation. His son, Stanislaus, the Senator, accomplished the work which his father had begun, sparing neither money nor trouble to make this solemnity most splendid and memorable.
