Our Lady of Banneux, Virgin of the Poor

Today marks the anniversary of the first apparition of Our Blessed Mother at Banneux, Belgium. On January 15, 1933, eleven year old Mariette Beco, the eldest of seven children born to a poor Belgian family, was reportedly looking for her younger brother Julien, who was late to arrive home. At around seven o’clock in the evening, while staring out her kitchen window, Mariette was surprised to see the luminous figure of a beautiful young woman. Mariette described this woman as “made of light.” She was dressed in white, with a light blue sash, and a golden Rosary over her arms which were joined in prayer.


While the Beco family was Catholic, they neither went to church nor prayed. Mariette had years earlier found a Rosary on the street, and always carried it with her, although she did not know how to pray with it. Upon spotting the woman through her window, Mariette called out to her mother, “Our Blessed Lady is smiling at me.” Mariette removed her Rosary from her pocket and began to pray while watching the apparition. The Blessed Virgin’s lips were moving, but Mariette could not understand her, and felt called outside to be closer to the apparition. Her mother, however, unable to discern the figure her daughter saw, forbade her to leave the house out of fear.

Mariette told her father, friends, and the local priest the following morning what she had seen, but was greeted with disbelief.

Our Lady of Banneux, the Virgin of the Poor, would appear to Mariette seven more times over the course of the next month. Her message each time was to pray for the poor, the sick, for sinners.


From the official site of Our Lady of Banneux, a prayer for intercession:

Blessed Virgin of the Poor, lead us to Jesus, Source of grace.
Blessed Virgin of the Poor, save all nations.
Blessed Virgin of the Poor, relieve the sick.
Blessed Virgin of the Poor, alleviate suffering.
Blessed Virgin of the Poor, pray for each one of us.
Blessed Virgin of the Poor, we believe in you.
Blessed Virgin of the Poor, believe in us.
Blessed Virgin of the Poor, we will pray hard.
Blessed Virgin of the Poor, bless us.
Blessed Virgin of the Poor, Mother of the Saviour Mother of God, we thank You.


Mary, Virgin of the Poor,
You lead us to Jesus, source of grace, and you come to alleviate our suffering.
We implore you with confidence: Help us to folow you Son with generosity, and to belong to Him unreservedly.
Help us to welcome the Holy Spirit Who guides and sanctifies us.
Obtain us the grace to look like Jesus everyday more, so that our life will glorify the Father and contribute to the salvation of our Brothers. Amen.



As with other Marian apparitions, on the anniversaries of each time Our Blessed Mother visited Mariette in Belgian, I will write about her message.