The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Blessed Virgin of Ta' Pinu () is a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

minor basilica Basilicas are Catholic church buildings that have a designation, conferring special privileges, given by the Pope. Basilicas are distinguished for ceremonial purposes from other churches. The building need not be a basilica in the architectura ...

and national shrine located some from the village of

Għarb Għarb () is an administrative unit of Malta, located at the westernmost point of the island of Gozo, with a population of 1,549 people (as of 2021). Etymology The name ''Għarb'' (غرب) comes from the Arabic word for "West," referring to ...

on the island of

Gozo Gozo ( ), known in classical antiquity, antiquity as Gaulos, is an island in the Malta#The Maltese archipelago, Maltese archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea. The island is part of the Republic of Malta. After the Malta Island, island of Malta ...

, the sister island of

Malta Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...

Pope Pius XI Pope Pius XI (; born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti, ; 31 May 1857 – 10 February 1939) was head of the Catholic Church from 6 February 1922 until his death in February 1939. He was also the first sovereign of the Vatican City State u ...

granted a Pontifical decree of coronation, ''Marianum exstat Sanctuarium'' towards its venerated Marian image, the Blessed Virgin of Ta' Pinu on 24 May 1935. The Archbishop of Tarsus, Cardinal

Alexis Lépicier Alexis-Henri-Marie Lépicier Servite Order, O.S.M. (28 February 1863, Vaucouleurs, Meuse (department), Meuse – 20 May 1936) was a Cardinal (Catholicism), Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church who was Congregation for Institutes of Consecr ...

signed and the Regent of

Apostolic Dataria The Apostolic Datary (Latin: ''Dataria Apostolica'') was one of the five ''Ufficii di Curia'' ("Offices of the Curia") in the Roman Curia of the Roman Catholic Church. It was instituted no later than the 14th century AD. Pope Paul VI abolished it ...

, Giuseppe Guerri notarized the decree via the

Sacred Congregation of Rites The Sacred Congregation of Rites was a Congregation (Roman Curia), congregation of the Roman Curia, erected on 22 January 1588 by Pope Sixtus V by ''Immensa Aeterni Dei''; it was divided into two separate congregations by Pope Paul VI on 8 May 196 ...

. The coronation of the image took place on 20 June 1935.

History

The origins of the Shrine of Our Lady of ta' Pinu are unknown. It was first recorded in the archives of the Curia in Gozo, when the Bishop Domenico Cubelles paid a visit to the chapel. This noted that the chapel had just been rebuilt and that it belonged to the noble family of "The Gentile". In 1575 the apostolic visitor

Pietro Dusina Pietro Dusina was an Italian Roman Catholic priest from Brescia who was the inquisitor and apostolic delegate to Malta between 1574 and 1575. Dusina was nominated inquisitor of Malta by Pope Gregory XIII on 3 July 1574, and he arrived on the isl ...

was delegated by

Pope Gregory XIII Pope Gregory XIII (, , born Ugo Boncompagni; 7 January 1502 – 10 April 1585) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 13 May 1572 to his death in April 1585. He is best known for commissioning and being the namesake ...

to visit the Maltese Islands. In his pastoral visit to the church, he found that it was in a very bad state. He ordered the church to be closed and demolished and its duties passed to the parish church, now the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Gozo. When demolition began the workman broke his arm while striking the first blow. This was taken as an omen that the chapel should not be demolished. The church was the only chapel on the island to survive Dusina's decree ordering the demolition of other similar chapels. Pinu Gauci became the procurator of the church in 1598 and its name was changed from "Of the Gentile" to "Ta` Pinu", meaning "Of Philip". In 1611 Gauci offered money for its restoration. It was rebuilt, with a stone altar erected and investments for liturgical services provided. Gauci also commissioned the painting of the Assumption of Our Lady for the main altar. This was done in 1619 by Amadeo Perugino. In 1883,

Karmni Grima Karmni Grima (2 February 1838 – 25 May 1922) was a Maltese peasant whose mystical religious experience led to the constructions and services as an apostle of Our Lady of Ta' Pinu. Biography Karmni Grima was born in the village of Għarb in G ...

was walking past the now run down church and heard a voice asking her to recite three "

Hail Mary The Hail Mary or Ave Maria (from its first words in Latin), also known as the Angelic or Angelical Salutation, is a traditional Catholic prayer addressing Mary, the mother of Jesus. The prayer is based on two biblical passages featured in the ...

s". Over the following years miracles were attributed to the grace of Our Lady of

The Assumption The Assumption of Mary is one of the four Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church. Pope Pius XII defined it on 1 November 1950 in his apostolic constitution as follows: It leaves open the question of whether Mary died or whether she was ra ...

to whom the church was dedicated. Francis Portelli also heard the voice coming from the painting. Francis Merċieċa also known as

Frenċ tal-Għarb Francis Xavier Mercieca (, 3 December 1892 – 19 May 1967), more commonly known as Frenċ tal-Għarb, was a farmer and healer from the village of Għarb in Gozo, Malta. He was a service apostle of Ta' Pinu, Our Lady of Ta' Pinu. Early life Fren� ...

was a devout of Our Lady of ta' Pinu and healed a lot of people in her name. Dankesbezeugungen_in_der_Wallfahrtskriche_Ta%27_Pinu_Nov_2014_04

The works for the new

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a place/building for Christian religious activities and praying * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian comm ...

began on 30 May 1920 on the initiative of the church's rector Monsignor

Ġużepp Portelli Ġużepp Portelli (8 December 1880 - 7 March 1949) was a Maltese Roman Catholic prelate who founded the present Ta' Pinu Basilica in Gozo. Early life and family Ġużepp (Joseph) Portelli was born in Għarb on 8 December 1880 to Luiġi Portelli ...

and was consecrated on 31 August 1932. It was built in a neo-romantic style. Inside the church there are 6

mosaic A mosaic () is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/Mortar (masonry), mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and ...

s, 76 coloured windows and many

ex-voto An ex-voto is a votive offering to a saint or a divinity, given in fulfillment of a vow (hence the Latin term, short for ''ex voto suscepto'', "from the vow made") or in gratitude or devotion. The term is usually restricted to Christian example ...

. The bell tower is 61 metres high.

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

celebrated mass on the

parvise A parvis or parvise is the open space in front of and around a cathedral or church, especially when surrounded by either colonnades or porticoes, as at St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. It is thus a church-specific type of forecourt, front yard or ...

of the shrine during his visit to the island of

on 26 May 1990. On 18 April 2010, when visiting

Pope Benedict XVI Pope BenedictXVI (born Joseph Alois Ratzinger; 16 April 1927 – 31 December 2022) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 19 April 2005 until his resignation on 28 February 2013. Benedict's election as p ...

donated and placed a

Golden Rose The Golden Rose (, ) is a gold ornament, which popes of the Catholic Church have traditionally blessed annually. It is occasionally conferred as a token of reverence or affection. Recipients have included churches and sanctuaries, royalty, mili ...

in front of the devotional image of Our Lady Of Ta' Pinu which was brought over from

for this special occasion. The Pope invited everybody to pray to Mary under the title "Queen of the Family". On 2 April 2022, after visiting the Chapel of Our Lady and praying there in silence, Pope Francis presided at a Prayer Meeting on the parvis of the church. The church building is listed on the

National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands The National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands (NICPMI) is a heritage register listing the cultural property of Malta. The inventory includes properties such as archaeological sites, fortifications, religious buildings, mon ...

Notes

References

External links

Official site

Diocese of Gozo - National Sanctuary
{{commons category, Ta' Pinu Shrine

Ta' Pinu The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Blessed Virgin of Ta' Pinu () is a Roman Catholic minor basilica and national shrine located some from the village of Għarb on the island of Gozo, the sister island of Malta. Pope Pius XI granted a ...

Gozo Basilica churches in Malta Għarb Church buildings with domes National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands Romanesque Revival architecture in Malta Roman Catholic churches in Malta Roman Catholic shrines in Malta Romanesque Revival church buildings

History

See also

Notes

References

External links