Our Lady of La Salette, the message of the visionaries in 1846

# La Salette: The Apparition in the French Alps## Introduction On September 19, 1846, the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to two shepherds, Mélanie Calvat (age 14) and Maximin Giraud (age 11), on a mountain in the French Alps near Corps (Diocese of Grenoble), at an altitude of 1,800 meters. The apparition lasted approximately forty-five minutes. A “Beautiful Lady,” seated and weeping, presented herself to them with a message in French and the local dialect (patois), emphasizing conversion, Sunday rest, and the profanation of God’s name. The message concluded with a warning about famines and sufferings if the people did not convert.## The Visionaries: Mélanie and Maximin Mélanie Calvat (1831-1904) and Maximin Giraud (1835-1875) were poor, almost illiterate children who worked as shepherds during the summer. They had never met before the apparition. After 1846, their lives took very different paths: Maximin never joined a religious order, led an unsettled life, and died at age 40. Mélanie became a nun, lived in several convents across Europe, and published the complete version of “the secret” that Our Lady had entrusted to her in 1879. Her complex personality and the apocalyptic content of the secret sparked ecclesiastical controversy until the end of her life.## The Public Message of La Salette The public message of La Salette focuses on three main themes: (1) disrespect for Sunday rest, “Can’t you do anything to sanctify Sunday?,” (2) blasphemy, “They blaspheme my Son’s name by using it as a curse word,” and (3) the consequences of infidelity, “If the harvest perishes, it is your fault.” The “Beautiful Lady” described herself as one who “spends her time praying for the people and suffering for their sins.” The public message was approved by Bishop Philibert de Bruillard of Grenoble in 1851, just five years after the apparitions.## La Salette’s Secrets During the apparition, Our Lady revealed a personal “secret” to each visionary, which they kept for years. Maximin’s secret was orally shared with Pope Pius IX in 1851 and had no significant consequences. Mélanie’s “secret,” published in 1879 with approval from the Bishop of Lecce, contains prophecies about the decline of the clergy, persecution of the Church, the rise of the Antichrist, and apocalyptic punishments for humanity. This text, with its more disturbing content, caused divisions: Rome placed subsequent editions on the Index in 1923, although the public message of 1846 remained approved.## The La Salette Sanctuary A sanctuary was built at the apparition site, dedicated in 1879, located at 1,800 meters altitude, and became one of France’s most important pilgrimage centers. The Missionaries of La Salette, founded in 1852 by the Bishop of Grenoble, spread devotion to the sanctuary worldwide. In Portugal and Brazil, several religious communities are under the patronage of Our Lady of La Salette. The liturgical feast is celebrated on September 19th.## La Salette and Fátima La Salette and Fátima are often compared in Mariological literature: both have messages of conversion and penance, both include secrets revealed to visionaries, and both announce consequences for infidelity. The primary difference lies in context: La Salette (1846) focuses on concrete social behaviors (Sunday, blasphemy, harvest), while Fátima (1917) has a universal dimension and includes an appeal to consecrate Russia. Both converge in the proposal of a daily Rosary as spiritual remedy.## Further Study Dive deeper into Mariology, apparitions marianas, Our Lady of Fátima, Marian theology, and consider enrolling in the Postgraduate Program in Mariology at [Locus Mariologicus](https://curso.locusmariologicus.org/25/esperapos2627).

See the complete list of Mary’s apparitions recognized by the Church.