By Fr Soroj Mullick, SDB –
People must have wondered why hundreds of men and women, young an
d old visit the Basilica of the Holy Rosary at Bandel or other shrines in India. Many do so in order to fulfil a vow made in the past, others come to pray, still others to see. The sacred promise to go on a pilgrimage to the Basilica is a way of telling God how desperate, how earnest they are in praying for protection and good life. How well do the shrines come to help in the daily journey of Christians? In them one expresses with simplicity one’s faith, which is enriched by many initiatives: retreats, courses, ritual offerings, moments of prayers and recollection etc. that lead them, in turn, to a lived charity. For this reason it is important that pilgrims, arriving at a shrine, feel at home and can pray in silence before the Lord and experience God’s mercy in the confessional.
Also read: Marian Shrines: Experience of Mercy
Shrines and New Evangelization
“The Shrine doors open for new evangelization”: this was the theme of the International Conference for Rectors of Sanctuaries (27-29 Nov 2018) held in Rome in the presence of about 600 rectors of shrines from all over the world, including Loreto, Fatima, Lourdes, Guadalupe, etc. With the apostolic letter of Pope Francis, Sanctuary in Ecclesia, Pope Francis transferred the powers related to the shrines directly to the Pontifical Council for the promotion of the new evangelization, highlighting the missionary dimension of the Church.
As a testimony of charity the Shrines are asked to keep “popular piety” (changed from ‘popular religiosity’, cf. EN 48) alive which “is the immune system of the Church” as one speaker held. (Cf. Gianantonio, Santuari: preghiera, misericordia, cordialità, in “La Madonna di Castelmonte”, Feb 2019, n.2, p. 12.). Welcoming attitude is, in the first place, the important mindset reserved for pilgrims. We know that more and more often our shrines are not welcoming places. Hospitality is important for the Church’s journey and for the pastoral ministry of shrines: pedagogy of evangelization, proclamation of faith, silent guardian of faith, and of mystery and beauty. The Marian shrines should respond well to the Church’s directions and suggestions.
In the daily journey that the Church takes, the shrines become the places where our people most willingly gather to express their faith in simplicity and in accordance with the various traditions, practices, religious rituals and cultural expressions of the place and people. They are moments of faith, witnessing the same love and live the same hope. Many shrines have arisen precisely because of the request for prayer that the Virgin Mary has addressed to the visionary, so that the Church may never forget the words of the Lord Jesus to pray without ceasing (Lk 18:1) and to remain vigilant while waiting for his return (cf. Mk 14:28).
Silence for the Sacred
In addition, shrines are called to facilitate the individual pilgrim’s prayer in the silence of his/her heart. With the words of the heart, with silence, with his formulas learned from memory as a child, with his gestures of piety, each one must be helped to express his/her personal prayer. There are many who come to the shrine because they need to receive a grace and then return to thank for having received it, often for having received strength and peace in the trial.
This prayer makes the shrines fertile places, because of the piety of the pilgrims or autonomous groups, who set out on a journey to reach these holy places. It is sad when it happens that, upon their arrival, there is no one to give them a word of welcome and to welcome them as pilgrims who have often made a long journey to reach the shrine. And worse still, is when they find the door closed! And priests are not available.
We cannot give more attention to material and financial needs, forgetting that the most important subjects of pilgrimage are the pilgrims. They’re the ones who matter. More than food and lodging, each one of them must be made to feel ‘at home’, as if a long-awaited family member finally has arrived. It must also be considered that many people visit the shrine because it is a local tradition; sometimes the works of art attract the people, or because it is located in a natural environment of great beauty.
Place of Prayer
The shrine is above all a place of prayer. Most of our shrines are dedicated to Marian piety. Here, the Virgin Mary opens the arms of her maternal love to listen to everyone’s prayer and intercede. The feelings of every pilgrim felt in the deepest of his/her heart are those experiences that are felt by Mary. Here she smiles, giving consolation; she sheds tears with those who cry. She presents to each the Son of God in her arms as the most precious possession that every mother possesses.
Mary makes herself a companion of every person who raises his/her eyes to her, asking for a grace, certain to be fulfilled. The Virgin responds with sensitivity to all with the intensity of her gaze, which the artists have figured on her face. For the pilgrims the Virgin Mary is alive in the miraculous statue. She guides her devotees to contemplation and encourages them to Church prayers and sacraments. Shrines would do well to encourage the pilgrims to pray the prayers of Church (Lauds, offices, vespers, etc.); that they always be nourished and grow in the knowledge of God’s love.
Fr. Soroj Mullick, SDB is a Salesian priest from the Kolkata Province. He has a Licentiate in Catechetics and a Doctorate (Christian Education) from UPS, Italy. He has number of years of teaching experience in college and in the formation of future priests. Besides, he has written number of research papers and articles, and has 25 years of Ministry in India and abroad as Educator, Formator, Retreat Preacher, Editor and engaged in School, Parish Catechetical & Youth Ministry. He is now an assistant priest in Bandel Basilica, rendering pastoral and catechetical ministry to the parishioners and to the pilgrims. He can be contacted at [email protected].