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The following morning I drove up the Interstate to Hanceville and The Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament, located in a remote section of the state. Once I got off the main highway, I began to travel down rural roads and county routes, passing fields with cows & horse ranches, the occasional home (some new, some old, some buildings being dilapidated barns). The remoteness and the richness of the greenery begins to prepare me as I make a final turn down a long yet simple stretch of roadway.
Horses grazing in the distance. White fences lining the road, leading toward the Shrine ahead. And I’m struck by the shear expanse in front of me as I crest the last hill. 380 acres of isolated farmland - 19 acres of which are behind the Monastery, sectioned off by a wall for the cloistered nuns in residence.
It’s mid-morning on a Wednesday. I park the rental car in the lot (which is purposely some distance away from the Shrine), and gradually make my way past two monuments of “The 10 Commandments” and “The Beatitudes,” behind which is a copper sculpture of Mary the Mother of God, gleaming in a polished green patina.
Then, some distance further ahead, is the wide Piazza paved in a herringbone pattern. Used for outdoor processions, and can hold up to 30,000 people. The Church at the far eastern end of the expanse.
At the west end of the piazza is Castle San Miguel - the gift shop and conference room facilities, built in a 13th century architectural design. Inside, by the east and west entrances, are tall statues of St. Michael the Archangel and St. Joan of Arc. Also in the foyer, just outside the gift shop entrance, are various tapestries, medieval manuscripts, and full-sized suits of armor (calling to mind the spiritual armor of God as enunciated in the books of Isaiah and Ephesians).
Just outside Castle San Miguel, towards the south, is a modest doorway leading into a mound in the field. Inside is the Crèche - an approx. ½-scale Nativity Scene open year-round for contemplation of the birth of Christ. A modest chapel-like setting with six small pews in front of the glass-enclosed scene. A large stone slab floor, with adobe-like walls and low ceiling. Two opposing stained glass windows with flickering wall lamps beside. Holy Water founts in the corners. And in front of the Nativity Scene is a kneeler and two banks of offertory candles to be lit by those who come with prayers and special intentions. Sacred Music gently plays from a hidden speaker system.
Back towards the piazza, in the center is the El Nino sculpture (the Monument of the Divine Child Jesus). Engraved in the steps leading up to it is a quote from Isaiah 11:6 “and a little Child shall lead them.” Behind this scuplture is the front of the church with a Romanesque/Gothic façade, and off to the side towards the back is the Bell Tower.
Atop the church you’ll notice a cross with its top piece missing. It was not like that originally. A severe storm damaged and sheared off the upper portion of that cross. But Mother Angelica chose not to have it repaired. The Tau Cross (tau is Greek for the letter “T”) was preferred by St. Francis of Assisi, using it as the signature of his writing. And being that EWTN and the monastery houses the Franciscans and the Poor Clares (St. Clare also being from Assisi), they decided to keep the damaged cross as it is.
Above the doors are the Three Rosettes (or seals). One with the Greek letter Alpha, another with the Greek letter Omega, and center one with a Latin inscription which says, “Let us adore for all Eternity the Most Blessed Sacrament!”
Leading up to the front of the church are The Seven Steps (symbolic of the seven days of creation, the seven sacraments, and the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit).
These steps lead you up to the two huge central doors called the Great Doors, made of bronze (adorned in great detail with the images of the Seven Joys of Mary on the left, and the Seven Sorrows of Mary on the right) reminding you that his Mother was there at every moment of our Lord’s life (from His conception to His ascension):
The Seven Joys
- The Annunciation
- The Visitation
- The Nativity
- The Adoration of the Magi
- The Finding of [the young] Jesus in the Temple
- The Rejoice of the Resurrection
- The Assumption & Coronation (Revelations 12)
The Seven Sorrows
- The Prophecy of Simeon (Luke 2:25-35)
- The Flight into Egypt (Matthew 2:13-18)
- The Loss of [the young] Jesus in the Temple
- Meeting Jesus on the Way to Calvary
- Jesus Dies on the Cross
- Jesus Taken Down from the Cross
- Jesus Laid in the Tomb
On either side of these main doors are the two bronze Minor Doors (topped with the images of the two patrons of the resident orders - Sts. Francis and Clare of Assisi).
I entered the building through a side door to the left, and headed down a long hallway towards the staircase to the Lower Church. In the antechamber of the Lower Church is a full-sized photographic replica of the Shroud of Turin, in tall vertical backlit display cases. Both the front and the back, side by side. And the full-sized photographic negatives against opposing walls. Even though it’s a photographic copy, it’s a rare opportunity to see this cloth up close and personal. [more Shroud links here]
Even after the suspect carbon dating that was done on the Shroud some years ago, more scientific data accumulates (from the weave of the fabric, to the types of pollen found on the cloth, to the scientific discrepancies with the carbon dating process that was used). And its authenticity becomes less and less suspect. The Shroud has never been a required article of faith (literally or figuratively) within the Catholic Church, but its beauty as well as its mystery continues to inspire, and summons reverence. Witnessing the extent and severity of the wounds as it is faintly depicted on the cloth is breathtaking.
And between these displays are replicas of the types of implements used at the time of Christ to flog, torture and crucify our Lord - including an arm-length sized whip with small dumbbell-shaped weights at the ends of the lashes, the large crucifying nails, and a crown of thorns.
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