Shrines to the Virgin Mary

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In the culture and practice of some Christian Churches - mainly, but not solely, the Roman Catholic Church - a Shrine to the Virgin Mary (or Marian shrine) is a shrine marking an apparition or other miracle ascribed to the Blessed Virgin Mary, or a site on which is centered a historically strong Marian devotion. Such locales are often the destination of pilgrimages.

Some of the largest shrines are due to reported Marian apparitions to young and simple people on remote hilltops that had hardly been heard of prior to the reported apparition. The case of Saint Juan Diego's reported vision of Our Lady of Guadalupe in 1531 is similar to the case of Saint Bernadette Soubirous's vision in 1858 of Our Lady of Lourdes. Both saints reported a miraculous Lady on a hilltop who asked them to request that the local priests build a chapel at the site of the vision. Both visions included a reference to roses and led to large churches being built at the sites. Like Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico, Our Lady of Lourdes is a major Catholic symbol in France. Both young people were eventually declared as saints.

The number of pilgrims who visit some of these shrines every year can be significant. E.g. Lourdes with a population of around 15,000 people, receives about 5,000,000 pilgrims every year and within France only Paris has more hotel rooms than Lourdes.

Side altar to the Blessed Virgin Mary in St Mary's Pro-Cathedral in Dublin
Side altar to the Blessed Virgin Mary in St Mary's Pro-Cathedral in Dublin

Contents

[edit] Major shrines

Our Lady of Lebanon, Harissa, Lebanon
Our Lady of Lebanon, Harissa, Lebanon

An extensive list of shrines by country is provided in the following sections. Some major shrines considered most significant for their apparitions and miracles are listed in this section:

For the Greek Orthodox the major Marian Shrine is the Church of Our Lady of Tinos, at Tinos island in Greece which constitutes the most important Christian pilgrimage in the Aegean.

A major Anglican pilgrimage site is the shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham, at Walsingham, in Norfolk, England.

[edit] Australia

[edit] Bosnia and Herzegovina

[edit] Brazil

[edit] Canada

[edit] China

[edit] Cyprus

[edit] Ecuador

  • Our Lady of the Swan (Nuestra Señora del Cisne), in El Cisne, Loja, Ecuador.

[edit] Egypt

[edit] France

[edit] Greece

  • Our Lady of Tinos, Tinos Island, Greece's patron saint.
  • Autonomous Monastic State of the Holy Mountain, Mount Athos, Greece,the garden of the Mother of God being out of bounds to all other women.

[edit] Holy Land

[edit] India

Malankara Orthodox St. Mary's Church, also known as Cheriapally (Little Church) in Kottayam, Kerala, India; originally built in 1579
Malankara Orthodox St. Mary's Church, also known as Cheriapally (Little Church) in Kottayam, Kerala, India; originally built in 1579

[edit] Ireland

[edit] Italy

[edit] Japan

[edit] Lebanon

[edit] Lithuania

[edit] Malta

[edit] Malaysia

  • Our Lady of Good Health. ( Annaivailankanni ) Kampong Pandan Kuala Lumpur.

[edit] Mexico

[edit] Netherlands

[edit] Nicaragua

[edit] Philippines

[edit] Poland

Marian Sanctuaries in Poland
Locality Church Cult Object
Bardo Church of the Visitiation of our Lady. Redemptorists Sculpture of our lady from the 12th century ., crowned July 3rd 1966. (abp Bolesław Kominek)
Będków Church of the Immaculate Conception Icon of Our Lady of Będkow from the 15th century.
Biechowo Church of the Immaculate Conception Paulists Icon of Our Lady of Joy MB from the 15th century crowned September 12, 1976. by (cardinal. Stefan Wyszyński)
Błotnica Church of the Immaculate Conception Icon of Our Lady from the 16th century crowned in 1977.
Bochnia Church of St. Nicholas Icon of Our Lady from the 15th-16th century, crowned in 1931.
Borek Stary Monastery of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary obraz MB Borkowskiej z Dzieciątkiem, crowned on the August 15th 1919

[edit] Portugal

[edit] Puerto Rico

[edit] Spain

[edit] Sri Lanka

[edit] Turkey

[edit] Ukraine

[edit] United Kingdom

[edit] United States

[edit] Venezuela

[edit] Vietnam

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Missionaries of the Divine Revelation

[edit] External links

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