Our Lady of Gietrzwałd (Polish: Matka Boża Gietrzwałdzka) is a title of the Blessed Virgin Mary associated with her apparitions in Gietrzwałd, Poland, in 1877. These remain the only Marian apparitions in Poland officially approved by the Catholic Church. ## 📜 History of the Apparitions On June 27, 1877, thirteen-year-old Justyna Szafryńska was returning home from church with her mother after passing her catechism examination. As the Angelus bells rang, she saw a bright light and a beautiful lady seated on a throne above a maple tree near the parish church. The following day, twelve-year-old Barbara Samulowska also witnessed the apparition while praying the Rosary. Over the following months, the Blessed Virgin appeared repeatedly to both girls. When asked to identify herself, she responded in Polish: "Jestem Najświętsza Maryja Panna Niepokalanie Poczęta" ("I am the Most Blessed Virgin Mary, Immaculately Conceived"). Her primary message was simple and consistent: "Życzę sobie, abyście codziennie odmawiali różaniec" ("I wish you to pray the Rosary every day"). The apparitions took on profound significance as Mary spoke exclusively in Polish—a language that was facing suppression at that time. Her presence and her use of the Polish language brought comfort to a people struggling to preserve their faith and identity. On September 8, 1877, the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, approximately 50,000 pilgrims gathered in Gietrzwałd. On that day, Mary blessed a nearby spring, whose waters pilgrims have since credited with healing properties. The final apparition occurred on September 16, 1877, when Our Lady blessed a statue of herself in a small chapel and parted with the words: "Odmawiajcie gorliwie Różaniec!" ("Pray the Rosary zealously!"). ## ☩ Recognition and Veneration The local bishop initiated an investigation through the cathedral chapter, which reported that the visionaries appeared sincere and pious. Medical examinations during the apparitions documented physiological changes in the girls, including slowed pulse, cooled extremities, and fixed gaze. On September 11, 1977—exactly one hundred years after the apparitions—Bishop Józef Drzazga of Warmia officially recognized the apparitions as worthy of belief, declaring them in compliance with Christian faith and morality. Cardinal Karol Wojtyła (the future Pope John Paul II) presided over the centennial celebrations. The miraculous image of Our Lady of Gietrzwałd, a 16th-century painting predating the apparitions, was crowned by Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński on September 10, 1967, with papal crowns granted by Pope Paul VI. ## 🕯️ Feast Days **September 8** – The Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary is celebrated with particular solemnity in Gietrzwałd, commemorating the day when the largest crowds gathered during the 1877 apparitions and Mary blessed the spring. **November 8** – The liturgical memorial of Our Lady of Gietrzwałd is celebrated in the Archdiocese of Warmia. ## 🙏 Message and Devotion Our Lady's message at Gietrzwałd centered on daily recitation of the Rosary, prayer and penance, sobriety, and trust in Mary's maternal care. The apparitions sparked a profound spiritual renewal throughout Warmia and beyond. Barbara Samulowska later entered the Daughters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul and served as a missionary in Guatemala for over fifty years until her death in 1950. Her cause for beatification was opened in 2005.