Posted on 04/15/2015 9:07:04 AM PDT by Salvation
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HOLY HILL
A shrine of Mary, Help of Christians in Hubertus, Wisconsin, northwest of Milwaukee. A statue of the Madonna, arms outstretched, with the Child beside her, is the central feature of the shrine. The present edifice is the third church built since 1863, when the first log building became to small to hold the pilgrims who came to Holy Hill, where it is reputed that Jacques Marquette first planted the Cross. Now in charge of the shrine, the Carmelites have built a six-story monastery on the grounds. Discarded crutches and braces there attest to the miracles attributed to Mary, Help of Christians.
All items in this dictionary are from Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life. Used with permission.
Holy Hill was discovered and mapped by Jesuit missionaries between 1673 and 1679. Based on their information a French hermit named Francois Soubrio went there around 1850 and camped there.It was designated a Basilica when Cardinal Dolan (now of NY) was the Archbishop of Milwaukee. I read elswhere that the upper church got new bronze doors for its 150th anniversary a couple of years ago.In 1855 Fr. Paulhuber, of Salzburg, Austria purchased 40 acres at the top of the hill from the government and three years later erected a 15 foot high oak cross made from a tree growing on the hill.
In 1862 a simple log chapel named the Shrine of Mary - was dedicated by Fr. George Strickner. Wooden Stations of the Cross were set up alongside the road that lead to it. In the winter of 1880 the chapel was replaced by a new shrine which was in use for 45 years.
In 1906 the Shrine was put under the care of a group of Discalced Carmelites from Bavaria.
Holy Hill was declared a Shrine with "Portiuncula privilege" by Pope Leo XIII in 1903. And, as a result of the increasing number of pilgrims, the Discalced Carmelites of Bavaria were invited to staff the Shrine in 1906. On November 19, 2006, the Shrine was elevated to the status of Basilica.
Soon the Basilica attracted so many pilgrims that it had to be replaced. It was razed in 1926. The present chapel was started in 1926 and was consecrated in 1931.
The chapel dominates Holy Hill. Above the entrance to the upper church are two 8-foot marble statues. The statue of St. Mary Help of Christians is on the left, and the statue of St. Joseph, protector of the order, is on the right. Inside the upper church, St. Teresa of Jesus and St. John of the Cross, founders of the Discalced Carmelites, are depicted in mosaics.
More than 500,000 people from all over the world visit the Basilica of the National Shrine of Mary, Help of Christians, at Holy Hill each year.
Interesting and thank-you. I have been told it acquired its parish when a church on HWY 167, (Holy Hill Road), burnt down. The good Fathers invited them to mass until they rebuilt their church. They never did, and so it became the only Carmelite sight with a parish in the world. Sounds good anyway.
I grew up near there, so it wasn’t a real challenge riding bike to Holy Hill. Climbing the tower was another story.
That is absolutely beautiful!
don’t let the Clinton campaign hear about it. They’ll be up all night figuring out how they can use it.
As timely a devotion as ever, since Mary, Help of Christians, was invoked against the Ottoman Empire in defense of the Christian people during the Middle Ages.
I have attended Mass at Holy Hill numerous times...Midnight Mass on Christmas is AWSOME...You can see Holy Hill from Hy 41, many miles away. I went to Catholic Memorial High School in Waukesha....not too many miles south
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