Basilica of Our Lady of Lourdes (Edegem)

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View from the tower side
inside view

The Basilica of Our Lady of Lourdes ( Dutch Onze-Lieve-Vrouw-van-Lourdesbasiliek ) is a Roman Catholic church in Edegem , Belgium . The parish church in the diocese of Antwerp is consecrated under the patronage of Our Lady of Lourdes to the Virgin Mary and bears the title of a minor basilica .

history

In 1884 Peter-Jan van Aelst had a Lourdes grotto built on his own property . After initial skepticism, this initiative received support from the church government and the grotto became a popular place of pilgrimage. The opening of a train station in Edegem on April 26, 1885 increased accessibility.

The Church of Our Lady met on the one hand with the growth of the central village parish of Edegem, which was too big for the historic St. Antonius Church, and on the other hand with the needs of the pilgrims. In 1929 the brick building was approved according to a design by architect Louis De Vooght (the other, original plan from 1927 was rejected). Cardinal Jozef-Ernest Van Roey laid the foundation stone on September 8, 1931 and consecrated the church on May 1, 1933. The completion and decoration of the interior lasted until the beginning of the Second World War.

At the beginning of December 2008, Pope Benedict XVI. the church to the rank of a basilica minor, whereby the name basilica was already common before.

Architecture and equipment

The basilica was built in the neo-Byzantine style . The dome and the detached bell tower with a height of 51 meters (53.5 meters with a cross) are striking . The stained glass windows are by Paul Wante, Marc de Groot and Jan Huet. Paul Wante also made the wall and ceiling paintings. He had to adapt his design after a conflict with the Ministry of Justice (responsible for the relationship between church and state in Belgium) and the Royal Commission for Monuments and Landscapes. The Way of the Cross, made of embossed copper, comes from the workshop of Maredsous Abbey . The pulpit was built by the brothers Frans and Alfons De Roeck based on a design by Canon Lemaire.

The organ was made by the Dutchman Anton Pels from Alkmaar with around 1,600 pipes , two manuals and around 30 registers . The organ has no real organ case and is erected in a free pipe prospect . This allows the window behind the organ to come into its own. The instrument was inaugurated on November 11, 1936. A major renovation took place in 1992. .

literature

  • André Mens en Pierre Hens: De basiliek van Edegem , Davidsfonds Edegem, 2008.
  • Robert Van Passen: Geschiedenis van Edegem , gemeentebestuur Edegem, 1974.

Web links

Commons : Basilica of Our Lady of Lourdes  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Basiliek Onze-Lieve-Vrouw van Lourdes on gcatholic.org (English)
  2. ^ Parochiekerk Basiliek Onze-Lieve-Vrouw van Lourdes. Retrieved October 18, 2018 (Dutch).

Coordinates: 51 ° 9 '22.8 "  N , 4 ° 27' 2.5"  E