On Tuesday morning, Pope Leo XIV made a private visit to the Marian Shrine of Our  Lady of Graces of Mentorella , located in Guadagnolo, a small fraction of Capranica Prenestina, in the diocese of Palestrina.

After offering his prayers and touring the shrine, the Holy Father shared lunch with the Polish Resurrectionist religious, who have guarded this sacred site for nearly 170 years. The meeting, according to Rector Father Adam Dzwigon, was “very moving,” imbued with simplicity, fraternity, and a paternal spirit.

As a gesture of prayer for world peace, the Pontiff lit a candle before the image of Our Lady of Graces and expressed a special plea for world peace.

About the Sanctuary

The sanctuary is nestled among rugged rocks on the eastern slope of the Praenestine Mountains, on a steep drop toward the Giovenzano Valley. On the summit of Mount Guadagnolo—the highest inhabited point in Lazio, at 1,218 m above sea level—stands the Monument to the Redeemer, erected in the 19th century by Pope Leo XIII, dominating the landscape of the Tiber Valley.

It is a place of deep devotion: the site was frequented by saints such as  Saint Benedict  and  Saint Gregory the Great , and it preserves the grotto where the former retreated to pray. Tradition also attributes the founding of the sanctuary to the Emperor Constantine.

Numerous pontiffs have chosen this shrine for moments of contemplation, including  Saint John Paul II  and  Pope Innocent XIII.  A path bearing his name has been created in honor of Wojtyla’s devotion.