Marie de Nazareth
To Jesus, through Mary
The Shrine of the Blessed Virgin of Mantara is located in the Greek-Melkite-Catholic Archbishopric of the Diocese of Saida and Deir-El-Kamar, in Lebanon. The word "Mantara" comes from the Arabic root word "Natar" which means to wait.
History
According to tradition, Mantara is the cave where the Virgin Mary waited for Jesus while he was preaching in Sidon (today’s Saida), because Jewish women were not allowed to enter pagan villages. The Gospels testify to the coming of Christ to Sidon, where he healed the daughter of the Canaanite woman (Mt 15: 21-28 and Mk 7: 24-31).
How the cave was discovered
By a stroke of luck the cave was rediscovered by a shepherd who was keeping his flock in the vicinity. While he was sitting under an oak tree, playing his flute, he suddenly heard the squeal of one of his young goats. He ran in the direction of the squeal and found that a kid had fallen into a well (the hole is in the roof of the cave over the altar). He took out his knife to clear the area and open the way through the bramble bushes. He was happy to discover a narrow path leading to the back of a cave! He crawled inside on his hands and knees. His anxiety turned into joy when he found an icon of the Virgin Mary on an ancient altar. Then he rushed out, leaving his flock, and ran to announce the good news to the villagers of Maghdouche.
Soon crowds flocked to explore the cave, which had been abandoned for so long, and contemplate the icon of the Virgin. The church bells rang to announce the event and processions were held in the village. This is how Marian devotion was revived again in that cave.
Two booklets, written by a bishop of Saida in the 1910s, recount 16 miracles related to children and infertile women. The Lady of Mantara loves little children: most of her miracles were done for them; she is sometimes called “Our Lady of the Children.” To this day, many children are baptized in the cave. They are then entrusted to the Blessed Virgin.
Many personalities of Saida, the Director of the Ottoman Tobacco Co., Mr. Joseph Aumann, his wife, the French consul, a priest, Fr. Nicolas Halabi, and several others, were going on a pilgrimage on Sunday June 11, 1911. In the evening, before heading back, they wanted to praise the Virgin one last time.
"They went into the cave. But--what a miracle! In front of their delighted and astonished eyes, the image of the Virgin appeared smiling. She probably wanted to show how satisfied and touched she was by their devout visit. She continued to smile for ten minutes, while the viewers gasped and looked at each others in surprise, filled with joy.
Then Father Nicolas turned to the French consul to ask him what he thought. The latter took a candle, lit it and went to the Holy Image to make sure she was really smiling ... then he turned towards the others and exclaimed: “I believe it! It’s a great miracle!”
Many other miracles have been recounted in a book by His Eminence Haggiar, bishop of the Saida’s diocese for Greek Catholics in the early twentieth century.
The Shrine's Path
To celebrate the Jubilee Year 2000, a path of open-air shrines was constructed. Twelve statues carved out of stone represent biblical events that took place in Lebanon and mention Lebanon as part of the Holy Land.
The purpose of the Shrines' Path is to help visitors experience these events and feel the sacred character of old Lebanon, visited by Christ and the Prophets. A meditation booklet, published in several languages, accompany visitors during their journey and help them to find and reflect on the message of each station, and how to apply it to their daily lives and respond faithfully to God's call.
The twelve stations of the Shrine's Path of Our Lady of Mantara:
See: [Lost link]