Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament | |
---|---|
Religion | |
Affiliation | Catholic Church |
Year consecrated | 1999 |
Location | |
Location | Hanceville, Alabama, United States |
Geographic coordinates | 34°03′20″N86°41′19″W / 34.055682°N 86.688594°W |
Website | |
olamshrine |
The Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament of Our Lady of the Angels Monastery, informally known as OLAM Shrine, is a prominent Catholic shrine located in Hanceville, Alabama, United States within the Diocese of Birmingham. Adjacent is the cloistered Monastery of the Poor Clare Nuns of Perpetual Adoration, situated on a 400-acre (160 ha) site and a religious center affiliated with the Eternal Word Television Network.
The shrine is notable for its gilt interior, solemn atmosphere, and 7.5-foot (2.3 m) monstrance. The shrine is named in honor of the Blessed Sacrament, while the building surroundings are dedicated to the Divino Niño, a title of the Child Jesus found prominently displayed all over the area. Its foundress, Mother Mary Angelica of the Annunciation, resided at the cloistered monastery with her nuns until her death in 2016.
In 1995, while travelling to Colombia to seek assistance for EWTN's Spanish-language programs, Mother Angelica attended Mass at the Sanctuary of the Divine Child Jesus in Bogotá and was inspired to build a shrine honoring the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist. Five anonymous benefactors contributed to the purchase of a 400-acre (160 ha) former soybean farm located in Hanceville, Alabama, and to construction costs and materials. [1] [2] The monastery was consecrated in December 1999.
The exterior is characteristic Romanesque, but incorporates pointed arches and other Gothic elements. Mother Angelica sought to model the Shrine on 13th century Italian architecture, with its piazza or plaza square, colonnade, esplanade and various cosmatesque designs. [3] She also wanted the building to reflect materials from all over the world. The ceramic tile came from South America. The bronze doors depicting the Seven Joys and Seven Sorrows of Mary were designed and crafted in Spain. The floors, columns, and pillars are made of marble. The rare red Jasper marble is from Turkey. The wood for the pews, doors, and confessionals is cedar imported from Paraguay. Spanish workers came to build the doors. The stained glass windows were imported from Munich, Germany. The stations of the Cross inside are hand-carved. [4]
The shrine consists of a cloistered monastery, upper and lower church, near life sized nativity scene, Lourdes grotto, castle which houses the gift shop and conference rooms, and John Paul II Eucharistic Center. [5] [ clarification needed ]
During construction, a storm struck the area, causing the church cross to be damaged. Initially, Mother Angelica wanted to repair it. [6] Later on, Mother Angelica associated the cross with the Tau cross. [7] The damaged remains of the top part of the cross are on display in the St. Joseph Courtyard. Another notable statue in the shrine depicts a scourged Jesus Christ, symbolic of his pain and suffering at the cross.[ citation needed ]
Hanceville is a city in Cullman County, Alabama, United States. At the 2020 census, the population was 3,217.
The Eternal Word Television Network, more commonly known by its initials EWTN, is an American basic cable television network which presents around-the-clock Catholic-themed programming. It is not only the largest Catholic television network in America, but reportedly "the world's largest religious media network", reaching 250 million people in 140 countries, with 11 networks. It was founded by Mother Angelica, in 1980 and began broadcasting on August 15, 1981, from a garage studio at the Our Lady of the Angels Monastery in Irondale, Alabama, which Mother Angelica founded in 1962. She hosted her own show, Mother Angelica Live, until health issues led to her retirement in September 2001. As of 2017, Michael P. Warsaw, who is a consultant to the Vatican's Dicastery for Communications, leads EWTN.
Eucharistic adoration is a Eucharistic devotional practice primarily in Western Catholicism, but also to a lesser extent in certain Lutheran and Anglican traditions, in which the Blessed Sacrament is adored by the faithful. This practice may occur either when the Eucharist is exposed, or when it is not publicly viewable because it is reserved in a place such as a church tabernacle.
Mother Mary Angelica of the Annunciation, also known as Mother Angelica, was an American Roman Catholic nun of the Poor Clares of Perpetual Adoration. She was best known for the television show Mother Angelica Live. She was the founder of the international broadcast cable television network Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN) and the radio network WEWN. EWTN became a voice for Catholics worldwide.
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The Franciscan Missionaries of the Eternal Word is a Public Clerical Association of the Faithful, located in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Birmingham in Alabama. They were founded in 1987 by Mother Angelica, who also founded the Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN) and the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament in Hanceville, Alabama.
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The Divino Niño, also known as Divino Niño de Bogotá or Divine Child Jesus, is a 20th-century religious wooden statue of the child Jesus originating from Bogota, Colombia. A cross originally in the back was removed upon purchase by Father Giovanni Rizzo. The 17-centimeter high statue with arms stretched out wide and wearing a traditional pink robe or tunic has an inscription "Yo reinaré" at its base. It is one of the most popular religious images in Colombia, especially among Roman Catholics and it is claimed to have miraculous powers of fertility and healing.
Rudolph William Steltemeier, Jr., known as Bill Steltemeier, was an American television executive, Roman Catholic deacon, and lawyer. Steltemeier served as the founding President of the Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN) from 1980 until 2000. He served as the CEO of EWTN from 2000 to 2009. Steltemeier remained the Chairman of the Eternal Word Television Network from 2000 until his death in February 2013.
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The Chapel of the Milk Grotto of Our Lady also called Grotto of Our Lady or Milk Grotto, is a Catholic chapel in Bethlehem, in the West Bank of the State of Palestine, erected in 1872. Since Byzantine times, the place has been a center of Christian pilgrimage, maintained since its last erection together with its Marian shrine and monastery by the Custody of the Holy Land of the Order of the Friars Minor of the Catholic Church in Palestine. The Status Quo, a 250-year-old understanding between religious communities, applies to the site.
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