After marrying, Antonina and Angelo Jannuso went to live with his family in Syracuse, Sicily. One of their wedding presents was a mass-produced plaster plaque of Our Blessed Lady. When Antonia discovered that she was pregnant, she developed toxemia and convulsions, leading to temporary blindness. Confined to bed, she found her refuge in prayer, for which her husband mocked her. On the 29th of August 1953 she was suffering from very bad cramps. Suddenly she became calm, but then suffered a seizure that left her blind. At about 8:30, her sight was restored. In Antonina’s own words:

“I opened my eyes and stared at the image of the Madonna above the bedhead. To my great amazement I saw that the effigy was weeping. I called my sister-in-law Grazie and my aunt, Antonina Sgarlata, who came to my side, showing them the tears. At first they thought it was a hallucination due to my illness, but when I insisted, they went close up to the plaque and could well see that tears were really falling from the eyes of the Madonna, and that some tears ran down her cheeks onto the bedhead.”

The family and neighbours were called and witnessed the miracle. Antonia stayed watching for several hours, wiping away the tears with a handkerchief and cotton wool, and the weeping occurred on many occasions from August 29 to September 1. When a priest notified the Bishop’s office, an investigative commission was formed of distinguished clergymen, four scientists and three reputable witnesses. They studied the phenomenon, and chemical analysis found that a sample of the tears were of the same composition as human tears.

From the time Antonina saw the tears, she recovered completely from her toxemia and gave birth to a healthy son. The weeping image of Our Lady of Syracuse was approved the next year by Pope Pius XII. The tears were collected in a precious reliquary now in the modern sanctuary that also houses the plaque. It was consecrated by Pope St John Paul II in 1994, and welcomes about one million pilgrims a year from around the world. Next Sunday the September Pilgrims will celebrate Mass at the Sanctuary and we will remember you all.

Fr Matthew