Our Lady the Garden Enclosed
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The Hermitage of Our Lady, the Garden Enclosed is the youngest of the typical Dutch hermitages. It was established in 2001 in the former parish-church of Warfhuizen, a village in the extreme north of the Netherlands. The hermitage of Warfhuizen revives the tradition of Dutch hermits which originated in the counter-reformation. As opposed to the most hermitages abroad, Dutch hermitages have a public chapel which often has a distinct role in popular devotions.
However, since the publication of the new ecclesiastical laws in 1983 (Codex Iuris Canonici), a more rigid enclosure of hermits is required. Because of those new rules, wrought iron enclosure-grilles were built inside the hermitage-church which separate the sanctuary from the nave to ensure the seclusion of the hermit, friar Hugo. Like in the contemplative monasteries, the divine office is sung daily in Latin. The counter-reformation spirituality of the Dutch tradition reveals itself by means of several devotions honored throughout the day. This influence is also stressed by baroque elements in the decoration of the sanctuary, in particular by the statue of Our Lady, the Garden Enclosed, by the Spanish sculptor Miguel Bejarano Moreno. This image of Our Lady of Sorrows is very popular with people worried for their children. The church is also a (unofficial) shrine for Spaniards living in the Netherlands.
