Our Lady of Lourdes (Kāpiti Coast)

Last updated

Our Lady of Lourdes
ArtistMartin Roestenberg
Year1958
Dimensions14 m(46 ft)
Location Paraparaumu, Kāpiti Coast
Coordinates 40°55′02″S175°00′39″E / 40.91728°S 175.01087°E / -40.91728; 175.01087

Our Lady of Lourdes is an outdoor statue of the Virgin Mary, located in Paraparaumu, New Zealand. It was built by Dutch artist Martin Roestenberg in 1958 after being commissioned by Catholic parish priest Father J.S. Dunn to mark the 100th anniversary of the apparition of the Virgin Mary at Lourdes. It is 14 metres tall, [1] [2] and was designed to last only three months.

Contents

The statue has a crown of 17 lights that give the appearance of a halo at night, which is visible for kilometres. [2] It is hollow, made of wood, [3] plaster and fibreglass.

There is a parish and a school named after the statue, both called Our Lady of Kapiti.

History

The current statue was the second attempt at building one, as the first fell over due to wind. [4] According to a later report, the current monument was designed to last only three months. [4] The head, which is two metres tall, was moulded at the artist's home in Taihape. It was then lowered by crane onto scaffolding, and the statue was then built from the head downwards. [2] There was no road on the hill when it was constructed. [5]

The statue was completed in August 1958. [2] This event was celebrated with a march in the streets of Paraparaumu, which commenced on 19 October 1958. It included six thousand nuns, priests and Catholic worshipers. The Archbishop of Wellington, Peter McKeefry, blessed the statue with holy water. [5] The statue was defaced with a coal tar oil in 1959. [5] In 1971 repairs to the plaster were made after it had started cracking. [4] In order to protect it from weather and vandalism, several layers of fibreglass were eventually added to the statue. [2] A shop under the statue opened in 1981, but it closed in 2010 due to competition from Trade Me. [5]

On Our Lady of Lourdes' 50th anniversary in 2008, 600 Aucklanders spent the night on the hill of the statue. [5] In 2009 it was reported that the statue was leaning over, and it was found that the hardwood posts supporting it had rotted; they were replaced with tanalised timber, and four concrete piles were also added. Ten years earlier, a crack at the base of the statue had been found. [4] In 2017, 500 pilgrims visited Our Lady of Lourdes. [6]

Parish and school

In 2014 two local parishes (St Patrick’s, Paraparaumu and Our Lady of Fatima, Waikanae) merged to form Our Lady of Kāpiti Parish, named after the statue. [7] Both churches were earthquake risks, and the decision was taken to build a new church and school on a central site. [7]

The school, named Our Lady of Kapiti School opened in 2017. [8] It was jointly funded by the Archdiocese of Wellington and the New Zealand Government. [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bernadette Soubirous</span> French Roman Catholic saint (1844–1879)

Bernadette Soubirous, also known as Bernadette of Lourdes, was the firstborn daughter of a miller from Lourdes, in the department of Hautes-Pyrénées in France, and is best known for experiencing apparitions of a "young lady" who asked for a chapel to be built at the nearby cave-grotto. These apparitions occurred between 11 February and 16 July 1858, and the woman who appeared to her identified herself as the "Immaculate Conception".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kāpiti Coast District</span> South-western section of the coast of North Island, New Zealand

The Kāpiti Coast District is a local government district of the Wellington Region in the lower North Island of New Zealand, 50 km north of Wellington City. The district is named after Kapiti Island, a prominent island 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) offshore.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ōtaki, New Zealand</span> Settlement in Wellington Region, New Zealand

Ōtaki is a town in the Kāpiti Coast District of the North Island of New Zealand, situated half way between the capital city Wellington, 70 km (43 mi) to the southwest, and Palmerston North, 70 km (43 mi) to the northeast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raumati Beach</span> Settlement in Wellington Region, New Zealand

Raumati Beach is a beach community on the Kāpiti Coast of New Zealand's North Island; located 60km north-west of Wellington, and about 10 km north of Raumati South. It is immediately to the south-west of the larger town of Paraparaumu. The Maungakotukutuku area is located immediately behind Raumati.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paraparaumu</span> Town in Wellington Region, New Zealand

Paraparaumu is a town in the south-western North Island of New Zealand. It lies on the Kāpiti Coast, 55 kilometres (34 mi) north of the nation's capital city, Wellington.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carfin Grotto</span> Christian shrine in Scotland

Carfin Lourdes Grotto, a Roman Catholic shrine in Scotland dedicated to Our Lady of Lourdes, was created in the early twentieth century. The "Carfin Grotto", as the shrine is locally referred to, was the brainchild of Father, later Canon Thomas N. Taylor, parish priest of St. Francis Xavier's Parish in the small, mining village of Carfin, which lies two miles east of Motherwell, in the West of Scotland. Following a trip to France's principal Marian shrine at Lourdes, Canon Taylor's vision was to build a religious memorial in honour of Our Blessed Lady based on the template of the Grotto of Massabielle. To realize this vision became his life's work. Since its opening in the early 1920s, the "grotto" has attracted pilgrims in the hundreds of thousands and its environs have been modified and enhanced with rich Catholic symbols and buildings. The grotto shrine offers a pilgrimage season with Sunday processions, rosaries, outdoor Masses and dedicated Feast Day events which run annually from early May until late September.

air2there was an airline based in New Zealand. It began service in 2004, and was based at the Kapiti Coast Airport, 60 km north of Wellington. It operated scheduled services across Cook Strait. Charter services to other New Zealand destinations were also available. Aero-medical flights were conducted from Wellington Airport using twin turbo prop aircraft. As of November 2018, air2there has not flown since June, and applications to liquidate the airline have been filed. The airline's Cessna Grand Caravan is up for sale

The following lists events that happened during 1958 in New Zealand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paraparaumu Beach</span> Settlement in Wellington Region, New Zealand

Paraparaumu Beach is a coastal settlement on the Kāpiti Coast of New Zealand's North Island. It is located west of the main Paraparaumu township, 50 km north of Wellington. The area faces Kapiti Island.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Otaihanga</span> Settlement in Wellington Region, New Zealand

Otaihanga is on the Kāpiti Coast of New Zealand's North Island. It is just north of Paraparaumu on the south bank of the Waikanae River and is roughly 55 km north of New Zealand's capital city, Wellington. Its name is Māori for "the place made by the tide".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kapiti Fine Foods</span> Manufacturer of dairy products

Kapiti Fine Foods Ltd is a New Zealand company that produces dairy products such as cheeses and ice cream. It takes its name from its original site at Lindale on the Kāpiti Coast. It was founded in 1984 and has factories in Palmerston North. It has been owned by Fonterra since 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kapiti Coast Airport</span> Airport in Paraparaumu, Greater Wellington region

Kapiti Coast Airport, also spelt Kāpiti Coast Airport and previously called Paraparaumu Airport, is on the Kāpiti Coast of New Zealand's North Island, between the Wellington dormitory suburbs of Paraparaumu Beach, Paraparaumu to the east, and Raumati Beach to the south. The Wharemauku Stream flows through part of the airport's land.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kapiti Line</span> Wellington commuter rail line

Metlink's Kapiti Line is the electrified southern portion of the North Island Main Trunk railway between New Zealand's capital city, Wellington, and Waikanae on the Kāpiti Coast, operated by Transdev Wellington on behalf of Greater Wellington Regional Council. Trains run frequently every day, with stops at 16 stations. Until 20 February 2011 it was known as the Paraparaumu Line.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lourdes, Newfoundland and Labrador</span> Town in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada

Lourdes is a town in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. The town had a population of 465 in the Canada 2016 Census. The current mayor of Lourdes is Henry Gaudon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kāpiti College</span> New Zealand school

Kāpiti College is situated at Raumati Beach on the Kāpiti Coast in New Zealand, 45 minutes drive from Wellington City. It was called Raumati District High School when built in 1954, then renamed Kapiti College in 1957. The Kapiti College motto is "Semper Fidelis" which translates to "Always Faithful".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Otaihanga railway station</span> Defunct railway station in New Zealand

Otaihanga railway station was a flag station between Paraparaumu and Waikanae on the Wellington-Manawatu Line in New Zealand, when the line was run by the Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company. This line is now part of the Kapiti section of the North Island Main Trunk.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes</span> Catholic church in Quezon City, Philippines

The National Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes, better known as the Church of Lourdes de Retiro, is a Roman Catholic national shrine in Quezon City, Philippines. The church is administered by the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin of the Philippine Ecclesiastical Province and under the Vicariate of San Pedro Bautista of the Diocese of Cubao.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kāpiti Expressway</span> Road in New Zealand

The Kāpiti Expressway is a four-lane grade-separated expressway on New Zealand's State Highway 1 route through the Kāpiti Coast north of Wellington. From the northernmost terminus of the Transmission Gully Motorway at Mackays Crossing just north of Paekākāriki, it extends northwards 31 km (19 mi) to just north of Ōtaki, bypassing the former two-lane route through Raumati South, Paraparaumu, Waikanae, Peka Peka, Te Horo and Ōtaki.

Paraparaumu College is a Year 9 to 13 co-educational state school on the Kāpiti Coast of New Zealand, approximately 45 minutes drive north of Wellington. There is an international student programme operating with students attending from different countries. The college was opened in 1977.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church, B Pallipatti</span> Roman Catholic Church in Tamil Nadu, India

Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church is catholic parish church in B. Pallipatti village near Bommidi in Dharmapuri district in Tamil Nadu, India. This parish is famous for its Jesus life story open theater drama Maasattra Ratham performed every second Friday after Easter. Also this is one of the oldest parish in Dharamapuri Diocese.

References

  1. ↑ "Our Lady of Lourdes (Paraparaumu, N.Z.)". natlib.govt.nz. Archived from the original on 10 August 2023. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Kāpiti Coast District Council. "Our Lady of Lourdes". www.kapiticoast.govt.nz. Archived from the original on 24 August 2023. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
  3. ↑ "Kia ora: Paraparaumu". NZ Herald. 10 August 2023. Archived from the original on 10 August 2023. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Walker, Randall (28 September 2009). "Statue of Mary has a lean on". Stuff. Archived from the original on 10 August 2023. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 O'Neil, Andrea (24 May 2015). "150 years of news - Miracle virgin statue dominates Paraparaumu". Stuff. Archived from the original on 10 August 2023. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
  6. ↑ "The great walk to Paraparaumu". NZ Herald. 10 August 2023. Archived from the original on 10 August 2023. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
  7. 1 2 "New Our Lady of Kāpiti church and centre opened". NZ Catholic Newspaper. 25 June 2020. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  8. 1 2 Poulopoulos, Adam (2 February 2017). "Our Lady of Kapiti School to open in Paraparaumu for new school year". Stuff. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.