Basilica of the Visitation of the Virgin Mary (Levoča)

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Facade of the basilica
Sanctuary

The Basilica of the Visitation of the Virgin Mary ( Bazilika Navštívenia Panny Márie in Slovak ) is a Roman Catholic pilgrimage church near Levoča in eastern Slovakia . The church in the diocese of Spiš with the patronage of the Visitation of the Virgin Mary is dedicated to the Virgin Mary and has the title of a minor basilica . The listed Marian basilica in Levoča is one of the oldest pilgrimage sites in eastern Slovakia.

history

At the beginning of the veneration of the Virgin Mary, the first chapel was built in 1247 on the Marienberg (Marianska hora) north of Levoča. The celebration of the Feast of the Visitation of Mary begins with the arrival of the Minorites in Levoča in 1311. In 1470 a Gothic church was built and a Gothic statue of the Virgin was erected. In the age of the Reformation, pilgrimages decreased at times. After the re-Catholicization, the first great procession and pilgrimage took place here on July 2, 1671. Two years later, the Church of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary was the place where indulgences were obtained with papal permission. Further church renovations were carried out in 1688 and 1819. In 1847 a wooden chapel was built for Greek Catholics.

Basilica and pilgrimage

The construction of today's neo-Gothic church took place between 1906 and 1914. The original Gothic statue of the Virgin Mary was put up again. The new church was consecrated on July 2, 1922 by the Bishop of Spiš Jan Vojtaššek. The tradition was also preserved during the communist era. Pope John Paul II elevated the church to a minor basilica in 1984 . The pilgrimage takes place annually on the first Sunday in July, in 1995 650,000 believers from all countries in the region took part in the largest pilgrimage as part of the papal visit. The pilgrimage route is lined by five chapels and an avenue of lime trees, which was named "Johannes-Paul-II.-Allee" after the Holy Father on the 10th anniversary of the Pope's visit.

Web links

Commons : Basilica of the Visitation  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Basilica Navštívenia Panny Márie on gcatholic.org
  2. ↑ Visit of the Holy Father on levoca.sk
  3. ↑ Pilgrimage to Marienberg in Levoca on slovakia.travel

Coordinates: 49 ° 2 ′ 36.1 ″  N , 20 ° 35 ′ 51 ″  E