Our Lady of Laghet

The Lady of Laghet is a well-known pilgrimage shrine in the Alpes Maritimes, France. This shrine is located in a village between the country of Monaco and Nice. Yet in spite of the affluent French Riviera Our Lady Laghet had very humble beginnings. Our Lady of Laghet is known for her many miracles, even though there has never been any Marian Apparitions. There has been so many spontaneous healings of the sick and mentally ill it become a major pilgrimage site. Most pilgrims come to Laghet seeking the beautiful white healing Madonna that has been sculpted from a rowan tree by an artist Pierre Moise of Paris. Yet there is a lesser known history, about another statue of Lady Laghet. She was a found in a lake and it was a Black Madonna. This Black Madonna was in a very poor state and was replaced by the newer Black Virgin that is now in shrined in the crypt. It was that Black Madonna within the crypt that called me to this Sacred Site. The first written history about the Virgin of Laghet was from the 12th century where a small chapel was built dedicated to the Virgin Mary. It was in this isolated place her chapel began. A place where shepherds brought their flocks with a few scattered homes of peasants. It was in the 15th century that the village became deserted. The chapel was so exposed to the wild elements that it was badly in need of repairs, only the shepherds came to graze their sheep.

Yet in the 17th century a priest, Father Jacque Fighiera a priest of village of Eze came upon this rural chapel of Laghet and the Holy Spirit called to his heart. He set out to repair the roof, whitewash the walls and it was said he even installed a proper door with a lock and a key he always carried in his pocket. There was an over grown walking path between the two villages of Eze and Laghet. Father Jacque cleared the old path so pilgrims could have access to the chapel of Laghet from Eze. The village of Eze is an interesting place I also visited when I lived in France. This is where a 12th century castle still remains. What I found when I visited the church of Eze was that it was dedicated to Isis/Mary. It is said the ancient Goddess Isis is under the veils of the French Black Madonna. When France was Gaul and occupied by the Romans they built many different temples to the Roman Goddesses. The Romans adopted the Egyptian Goddess Isis into their Goddess Pantheon with the conquering of Egypt. This is how Isis was introduced into ancient Gaul. Today the Catholic Church of Eze have engraved golden letters of I and M “Isis/Mary” on the face of the altar. There is also a combination of Cross and Ankh hanging on the walls of this church. Father Jacque used his own money to repair the Chapel of Laghet and then donated his own statue of a White Virgin. Yet the Black Madonna that is in the crypt of Laghet is not mentioned in Laghet pilgrimage history. Our Lady of Laghet was carried in a procession from Eze to Laghet on June 24th 1652 and placed on the main altar. Father Jacque was the caretaker of Laghet for 25 years. Lady Laghet feast day June 24th is still celebrated today by the carrying her statue from Eze to Laghet. There have been countless miracles which began to happen after the new statue was enshrined at Laghet. These miracles includes a man with leprosy who was cured just after invoking the name of Our Lady of Laghet. A widow's prayers were answered for her son who was liberated after being taken by pirates. It said that Father Jacque Fighiera prayed over an epileptic girl and she also was healed. Even to this day pilgrims come and their prayers are answered. The Kings of Savoy, the Royality of Italy also have supported Laghet as a local shrine and pilgrimage. This is my own experience of visiting Laghet and finding the lesser known Black Madonna. A French woman we had met was our guide into this area. We were going to meet her at the steps of the church. As we were waiting, I noticed how the village was surrounded by a swirling rock formation around the cathedral that was a natural protection like castle walls. We met our friend and her daughter in front of the church. We exchanged the usual kisses on both cheeks and then went into the cathedral. The walls of the church were completely covered with testimonials of miracle cures that took place for people who had prayed to the Lady of Laghet. We walked through three areas with wall-to-wall testimonials of miracle cures. The areas were filled with many flickering votive candles, handmade pictures, photographs and needlework projects that proclaimed the miraculous power of the Madonna. I turned the corner and entered the main altar area. This part of the church expressed 17th century influences in Baroque style, typical of Nice and the Province area. It was filled with green marble, different shades of yellow to gold and the rich colors of the period. A feeling of layered history, deeper than what could be seen by the eye, was present. There on the high altar was the Lady of Laghet, taking her honored place in the church. I closed my eyes and the silence came to me easily. Yet even in the silence, the side altars of the church captured my attention. Both altars on each sidewall had two golden pedestals that spiraled on the side of each altar. I realized the church was built upon powerful ley-lines and this energy could be felt strongly. It was not only running through these four pillars, spiraling energy from the sidewalls it even spiraled up into church's steeple. I could feel this same energy running up through my body at the very same moment. I was standing on Holy Ground. Many famous healing shrines around the world have ley-lines, connected to fresh water springs and an abundance of earth healing fertility. I feel this magnetic forces of the Earth's Ley-Lines are very beneficial for extraordinary healing to take place and this is why so many Marian sites are built upon such places. What you also can find in such a place are the shrines of the Black Madonna, the Great Goddess of Fertility herself. This is why I had come to Laghet. We walked down to the crypt, the womb of Mother Church. The door was locked, but a black nun offered to open the door. She brought forth a large key from her pocket and opened the chapel door of the crypt. It was here we viewed the dark hidden treasure of Laghet, La Vierge Noire. In the darkness of the crypt our little group sat down before the Madonna and child. She was carved into the dark wood and held Baby Jesus. She was smiling simple and beautiful. Everyone slipped into their own silent meditation experience as we sat in the darkness of the crypt. As I sat, I was slipping into a vision state. I saw green vines come out of the earth, wrapping themselves around my legs. Flowers bloomed at my feet and the Virgin spoke to me, "Paint me please. Let people know of the flowers that were once dedicated to me" Her words took me back to a time when I studied the plants that were dedicated to Mary. There were 600 flowers and plants that were devoted to Mary, between the 12th and 15th century.******** Rose de Notre Dame, known as Anastatica hierochon*** Bonne Femme, known as Columbine*** Fleurs a la Vierge, also known as Greater Stitchwort*** Chevaux de la Virgin, also known as The Virgin's Hair, still better known as Clematis Vitalba*********** I sat in the silence and felt the coolness of the crypt. My vision faded and our little group got up and walked out into the open spring air. The wild flowers in the small open spaces around the church called me. Our Lady’s flora was everywhere. The Black Madonna had Bless me with her own miracle.************

This affordable Pilgrimage Chaplet is made with glass faceted beads, one bead of Oregon Mytle Wood and Medal Circle which was the way Medieval Pilgrims attach their Chaplet to their belt when going on Pilgrimage.

resources: paula-marvelly-sanctuaire-notre-dame-de-laghet https://provence-alpes-cotedazur.com/en/things-to-do/culture-and-heritage/places/sanctuaire-notre-dame-de-laghet-la-trinite-en-2854840/ https://www.hellomonaco.com/the-riviera/in-the-neighborhood/monaco-neighbours-notre-dame-de-laghet/ https://www.jstor.org/stable/community.10679369 https://www.catholic365.com/article/19192/remembering-our-lady-of-laghet.html https://udayton.edu/marianlibrary/marysgardens/f/french-mary-plants.php*******for custom made Rosaries or simple Chaplets contact me at rayleneabbott@gmail.com