On July 13, many dioceses around the world will celebrate the feast day of Rosa Mystica, or the Our Lady of the Mystical Rose. Though not an official feast day of the Roman Catholic calendar, the devotion to Our Lady of the Mystical Rose received approval from the Vatican July 8, 2024. For those unfamiliar with the epitaph and devotion to Mother Mary, referring to Mary as “mystical rose” has both ancient roots and more recently planted seeds of devotion.
In the first century, the early Christian church associated roses with the mother of God due to their Greco-Roman cultural associations with beauty, fertility and love. Around 1300, St. Brigid wrote, “The Virgin may suitably be called a blooming rose. Just as a gentle rose is placed among thorns, so this gentle Virgin was surrounded by sorrows.” In the Litany of Loreto, codified and approved by Pope Sixtus V in 1587, one of the titles offered for Mary is “Mystical Rose.” And in more recent times, Marian apparitions have often been accompanied by the presence of and miraculous growth of roses. Heavenly roses filled Juan Diego’s tilma at Guadelupe, the three rose garlands appeared with of Our Sorrowful Lady of La Salette, and a rose bloomed on the forehead of Mary, Queen of the Most Holy Rosary at Knock.
In the past century, the spiritual experience of Pierina Gilli, an Italian woman and devout Catholic, spurred on the Mystical Rose devotion. In Montichiari, Italy, between 1946 and 1947 Gilli received multiple visits from Our Lady of the Mystical Rose and then experienced further appearances in 1966. As stated above, these apparitions and spiritual reflections of Gilli’s writings and prayers after receiving them, studied by the Vatican through her diary entries, have since been endorsed by the church authorities in 2014, and the canonical establishment of the diocesan shrine Rosa Mystica Mother of the Church was officially proclaimed during a solemn Eucharistic co-celebration in December of 2019.
The devotion holds space for Mary as a woman and mother who experienced both joy and sorrow, while also affirming her spiritual influence through apparitions and revelations to the church.
The devotion to Mary as the Mystical Rose has fascinated and spiritually served many servants of God from all over the world, and Gilli’s faithfulness in communicating her visions supports the ancient and recent associations between Mary and roses. In the letter to the bishop of Brescia, Italy, affirming the devotion, the church authorities praised Gilli’s dedication to presenting Mary as a “Mother to the church,” which prevents this devotion from being individualistic and instead reminds us all of the communal call of the Gospel. Gilli is also commended for her understanding of this apparition as a beautifully joyful gift from a maternal Mary and extolled Mary the Rose as beautiful, good and deeply loving.
I was introduced to the devotion to Mary as the Mystical Rose through a recent Jesuit Media Lab offering. The devotion resonated deeply with me as this image connects Mary to both the natural world and the mystical experience. The devotion holds space for Mary as a woman and mother who experienced both joy and sorrow, while also affirming her spiritual influence through apparitions and revelations to the church.
As you read my Letter to the Mystical Rose, consider what images and titles for Mary resonate in your heart. Perhaps peruse the Litany of Loreto and see if any new ones illuminate your imagination. And if you feel so called, pen a letter to Mary holding this image or title in your mind. I hope and pray that this practice might foster a deeper love for our holy Mother and a closer walk with her Son.
Letter to the Mystical Rose
Mother Rose, queen of flowers and of heaven,
I marvel at the gentle layers of mysticism you hold,
The unfolding of your wisdom,
The awakening of your purpose.
In you, I glimpse the interior of the soul,
Delicate and soft,
But strong and capable of sheltering the image of God.
Mother Rose, who the Spirit of the Lord first came upon,
You accepted your role as mother with bravery,
You sang out with joy at your Son’s role in our salvation.
You protected him with tender strength,
You were his home on this earth,
the roots and grounding of his full humanity.
Mother Rose, who held the Christ child in your body and your arms,
You teach us the beauty of transformation,
Of the seasonality of all things,
Of the goodness in the bud and bloom,
The importance of our roots and our thorns.
Through your example we learn to grow with grace.
Mother Rose, in whose arms we all find rest,
We humbly ask that you intercede for us,
Act as mediator between humanity and your beloved Son,
We long for your wisdom,
Your gentle grace,
And hearts like yours which bear the image of God.
Enfold us in your protection,
Wrap us in the tender mercy of your care.
Speak love to your children,
Aid us in rediscovering our belovedness.
May we walk close you, Mystical Rose,
And draw ever nearer to your Son.
Top art: “Our Lady of the Roses” by Simon Saint-Jean (public domain)
