A pilgrimage church (German : Wallfahrtskirche) is a church to which pilgrimages are regularly made, or a church along a pilgrimage route, like the Way of St. James, that is visited by pilgrims.
Pilgrimage churches are often located by the graves of saints, or hold portraits to which miraculous properties are ascribed or saintly relics that are safeguarded by the church for their veneration. Such relics may include the bones, books or pieces of clothing of the saints, occasionally also fragments of the cross of Jesus, pieces of the crown of thorns, the nails with which he was fixed to the cross and other similar objects. Pilgrimage churches were also built at places where miracles took place.
Churches are listed in alphabetical order of the sites in or near where they are located.
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 destinations of Christian pilgrimages.
The term Black Madonna or Black Virgin tends to refer to statues or paintings in Western Christendom of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Infant Jesus, where both figures are depicted with dark skin. Examples of the Black Madonna can be found both in Catholic and Orthodox countries.
Our Lady of China, the Great Mother, also known as Our Lady of Donglü, is a Roman Catholic title of the Blessed Virgin Mary associated with a reputed Marian apparition in Donglü, China in 1900.
The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Knock, commonly referred to as Knock Shrine, is a Roman Catholic pilgrimage site and national shrine in the village of Knock, County Mayo, Ireland, where locals claimed to have seen an apparition in 1879 of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint Joseph, Saint John the Evangelist, angels, and Jesus Christ.
Our Lady of Walsingham is a title of Mary, mother of Jesus venerated by Catholics and High Church Anglicans associated with the Marian apparitions to Richeldis de Faverches, a pious English noblewoman, in 1061 in the village of Walsingham in Norfolk, England. Lady Richeldis had a structure built named "The Holy House" in Walsingham which later became a shrine and place of pilgrimage.
Our Lady of Good Health, also known as Our Lady of Vailankanni, is a title given to the Blessed Virgin Mary by devotees. She is said to have appeared twice in the town of Velankanni, Tamil Nadu, India, in the 16th to 17th centuries.
The Sanctuary of Las Lajas is a Catholic minor basilica located within the canyon of the Guáitara River in Ipiales, Nariño Department, Colombia. The Marian shrine is dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary as Our Lady of the Rosary.
Catholic Marian churches are religious buildings dedicated to the veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary. These churches were built throughout the history of the Catholic Church, and today they can be found on every continent including Antarctica. The history of Marian church architecture tells the unfolding story of the development of Catholic Mariology.
Mary has been one of the major subjects of Western art for centuries. There is an enormous quantity of Marian art in the Catholic Church, covering both devotional subjects such as the Virgin and Child and a range of narrative subjects from the Life of the Virgin, often arranged in cycles. Most medieval painters, and from the Reformation to about 1800 most from Catholic countries, have produced works, including old masters such as Michelangelo and Botticelli.
The Sanctuary of Fátima, officially titled Sanctuary of Our Lady of the Rosary of Fátima, is a Marian shrine dedicated to Our Lady of Fatima located in Fátima, in the municipality of Ourém, in Portugal. It consists of a group of Catholic religious buildings and structures with the Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary as the main building.
Santuario della Madonna del Divino Amore, or the Shrine of Our Lady of Divine Love, is a Roman Catholic shrine in the southern outskirts of Rome dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary that consists of two churches: an old church built in 1745 and a new church added to the sanctuary in 1999. The church was included by Pope John Paul II in the pilgrimage of Seven Pilgrim Churches of Rome during the Holy Year 2000.
Our Lady of Šiluva is Roman Catholic image of the Blessed Virgin Mary venerated at the Basilica of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Šiluva shrine in Lithuania. The patriotic icon is highly venerated in Lithuania and is often called Lithuania's greatest treasure.
Religion and spirituality, a pilgrimage is a long journey or search of great moral significance. Sometimes, it is a journey to a sacred place or shrine of importance to a person's beliefs and faith. Members of every major religion participate in pilgrimages. A person who makes such a journey is called a pilgrim.
The Divine Mercy Sanctuary in Kraków, Poland, is a Roman Catholic basilica dedicated to the devotion of the Divine Mercy, and is the resting place of Saint Faustina Kowalska.
A national shrine is a Catholic church or other sacred place which has met certain requirements and is given this honor by the national episcopal conference to recognize the church's special cultural, historical, and religious significance.
Santa Maria della Misericordia is a Renaissance-style, Roman Catholic basilica church and Marian shrine located on Piazza San Vincenzo Maria Strambi, next to the Cathedral, in the center of Macerata, region of Marche, Italy.
The Parish and National Shrine of Saint Padre Pio, commonly known as Padre Pio Shrine, is a Roman Catholic parish church and pilgrimage site situated along Governor Antonio Carpio Avenue in Barangay San Pedro, Santo Tomas, Batangas, Philippines. It is consecrated to the Italian Saint Pio of Pietrelcina.