Dievo Motinos apsireiškimas Šiluvoje: istorinis, teologinis, etnologinis aspektai

Abstract

Lithuania is a country in the North-Eastern Europe. It has been a Christian country for more than 600 years.The most common confessions are Catholic, Orthodox and Evangelic. Lithuania is comprised of five ethnographicregions: Aukštaitija, Dzūkija, Suvalkija, Žemaitija and Lithuania Minor. Žemaitija distinguishes fromother regions by the strength of Catholic faith. The famous sanctuary of the revelation of the Mother of God inŠiluva is located in this same region.In the opinion of the Catholic Church and the faithful, the sanctuary of Šiluva is a miraculous site sincethere has happened one of the first revelations of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Europe, according to historicalrecords of the Lithuanian Catholic Church. Nevertheless, there are no remaining documents confirming therevelation of the Mother of God in Šiluva. It proves the relevance of this topic. Researches of many scientificfields present only the very fact of the revelation of the Mother of God in Šiluva, but they do not analyse it indetail or why did it happen. Therefore, causality of the revelation of the Mother of God in Šiluva was chosenas the object of research.The tasks of research: 1. Briefly present the data about the revelation of the Mother of God in Šiluva;2. Look into the event of revelation in the context of theology of the Catholic Church; 3. Analyse how the eventof Mary’s revelation in Šiluva might be related to ancient Lithuanian worldview; 4. Based on presented materialand insights present conclusions revealing the reasons that determined the revelation.The conclusion can be made that the revelation of the Mother of God in Šiluva was determined by:1. Ancient Lithuanian worldview that was still alive in Šiluva in the 17th century, which was one of inducementsfor the miracle (revelation) to happen;2. Šiluva of the 17th century was the hotbed of frictions between Christian confessions (Catholic andCalvinist). This stimulated the revelation of the Mother of God that destined Lithuania to remain a Catholiccountry.3. Before ascension to heaven, Jesus promised to send His Spirit that will take care of His disciples. Maria,as intercessor and mediator, saved Lithuania and its people from the shackles of paganism and Calvinism.Presented conclusions allow hypothetically treating the revelation of the Mother of God in Šiluva in 1608as a regular event that was determined by certain circumstances.