00:00On August 5, the Church celebrates Our Lady of the Snows, an ancient devotion, born from a miracle in the heart of summer, in the Eternal City.
00:13It is the fourth century in Rome. A noble, pious but childless couple fervently prays to the Virgin Mary to know her will.
00:23One August night, they both had the same dream. The Mother of God asked them to build a church on the site she would indicate to them by a heavenly sign.
00:34On the morning of August 5, 358, despite the stifling heat of the Roman summer, the Esquiline Hill was mysteriously covered in snow.
00:45Yes, snow. Immaculate whiteness, fallen from the sky, where it never appears at this time of year.
00:55Alerted by the miracle, Pope Liberius went to the site and personally traced the plan of the future basilica in the snow.
01:03This is how one of the most beautiful churches in Rome was born, Santa Maria Maggiore, the first dedicated to the Virgin Mary in the West.
01:16Even today, every August 5, thousands of white flowers are thrown from the vault of the basilica, recalling this miraculous snow.
01:26This gesture symbolizes the freshness, purity and maternal love of Mary for her children.
01:35Our Lady of the Snows is much more than a memory of a miracle.
01:40She is a sign of hope.
01:43She reminds us that, even in the oppressive heat of our lives, even in our inner dryness,
01:50God can make snow fall, an unexpected grace, a divine freshness.
01:59So today, let us place our intentions at the foot of Our Lady of the Snows.
02:04May she bring down upon our hearts the snow of forgiveness, consolation, and peace.
02:10She is a mother, she watches over, and her white cloak covers the wounds of the world.
