Aleteia reports Gozo became "Little Lourdes"

The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes in Gozo stands on land where a devotee named Anġlu Grech reportedly owned a farm, according to Jean Pierre Fava.

The local population in Malta embraced the news of the 1858 French apparitions quickly due to a long-standing devotion to the Virgin Mary. Fava notes that the messages of prayer, penance, and healing from the apparitions resonated with the faithful on the islands.