SPECIAL DEVOTION:
Our Lady of Loreto

FEAST DATE:
December 10th

INFORMATION:
Our Lady of Loreto refers to the Holy House of Loreto. Sometime Loreto is spelled Loretto.  This Feast is about a church in Loreto, Italy.  The Basilica della Santa Casa, in English it is called Basilica of the Holy House is a Catholic place of pilgrimage in Loreto, Italy,
containing the house in which the Blessed Virgin Mary was born and raised as a child.

True Miracle:
History of Holy House of Loreto
The Holy House of Loreto, the house in which the Blessed Virgin Mary was born and raised as a child.  The Holy House of Loreto, the house where the Annunciation occurred.  Archangel Gabriel’s appearance to the Virgin Mary (Luke 1:26-38), his announcement that the Blessed Virgin had been chosen to be the Mother of Our Lord, and Mary’s fiat-her willing acceptance of God’s Holy Plan.  The Holy House of Loreto, the Holy House of Nazareth where the Blessed Virgin Mother and St. Joseph raised the Son of the Most High, Jesus.
Royal Household - Jesus, Blessed Virgin, and St. Joseph.

Three True Miracles by Angels:
(1.) The Holy House came under threat during the turmoil of the Crusades, so in 1291, angels miraculously translated the house from its original location to a site in modern-day Croatia.  Parish priest, brought to the scene by shepherds who discovered it, had a vision in which the Blessed Virgin Mary revealed it was her former house.

(2.) On December 10, 1294, the house was again moved by angels because of the Muslim invasion of Albania.  It landed first in Recanti, Italy.

(3.) Shortly thereafter moved for a third time to its present location in Loreto. Italy.

Four True Facts by Saints:
(1.) In 1219, St. Francis of Assisi, whose spiritual sons were later to be given charge of the Holy House, visited this holiest spot on earth in Nazareth.

(2.) St. Louis, King of France, heard Mass in Nazareth in 1253 in the same Holy House.

(3.) The last crusade that St. Louis IX knelt on the ground that had once been frequented by Our Lord, and received Him into his heart in Holy Communion.
The saintly king deemed this to be a far greater privilege than his earthly royalty.

(4.) St. Therese, the Little Flower of Jesus, once visited the Holy House.


True Miracle World War II:
During World War II, the shock of airwaves destroyed many solidly built houses, ancient and modern, as well as fortified castles.  The vicinity of Loreto and the city itself were bombed by the Allies (Americans) several times during the conflict, but the Holy House,
the House of Nazareth still stand erect.

Addition Information and The Official Website:
Because of the Angels moving the Holy House this flight, and the longevity of the Holy House that has led to Our Lady of Loreto the Patronage:

It is the first shrine of international renown dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, and has been known as a Marian center for centuries.  Popes have always held the Shrine of Loreto in special esteem, and it is under their direct authority and protection.
The sacred site attracts as many as 4 million Catholic pilgrims and visitors each year.

The Basilica shelters the Holy House of Loreto.

The Holy House of Loreto is small stone building measuring 13 x 31 feet, with traces of medieval murals on the inner walls.  On the east wall (not part of the original building) is an altar with the Latin inscription Hic Verbum Caro Factum Est, “Here the Word was made flesh”.
A statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary with the Child Jesus stands above the altar. 

Sanctuary of The Holy House of Loreto Official Website