Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament of Our Lady of the Angels 01

The Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament of Our Lady of the Angels Monastery, informally known as OLAM Shrine, is a prominent

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

Latin Rite Latin liturgical rites, or Western liturgical rites, are Catholic rites of public worship employed by the Latin Church, the largest particular church '' sui iuris'' of the Catholic Church, that originated in Europe where the Latin language once ...

shrine located in

Hanceville, Alabama Hanceville is a city in Cullman County, Alabama, United States. At the 2020 census, the population was 3,217. History Founded in Blount County, Hanceville was established in 1832 and incorporated in May 1879. At the time of Cullman County's cr ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

within the Diocese of Birmingham. Adjacent is the cloistered Monastery of the Poor Clare Nuns of Perpetual Adoration, situated on a site and a religious center affiliated with the

Eternal Word Television Network 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 ...

. The Shrine is notable for its gilt interior, solemn atmosphere, and monstrance. The Shrine is named in honor of the Most

Blessed Sacrament The Blessed Sacrament, also Most Blessed Sacrament, is a devotional name to refer to the body and blood of Christ in the form of consecrated sacramental bread and wine at a celebration of the Eucharist. The term is used in the Latin Church of the ...

, while the building surroundings are dedicated to the Divino Niño, a title of the

Child Jesus The Christ Child, also known as Divine Infant, Baby Jesus, Infant Jesus, the Divine Child, Child Jesus, the Holy Child, Santo Niño, and to some as Señor Noemi refers to Jesus Christ from his nativity to age 12. The four canonical gospels, a ...

found prominently displayed all over the area. Its foundress, Mother Mary Angelica of the Annunciation, resided at the

cloister A cloister (from Latin ''claustrum'', "enclosure") is a covered walk, open gallery, or open arcade running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle or garth. The attachment of a cloister to a cathedral or church, commonly against a ...

ed monastery with her nuns until her death in 2016.

History

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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 The real presence of Christ in the Eucharist is the Christian doctrine that Jesus Christ is present in the Eucharist, not merely symbolically or metaphorically, but in a true, real and substantial way. There are a number of Christian denomina ...

. Five anonymous benefactors contributed to the purchase of a former

soybean The soybean, soy bean, or soya bean (''Glycine max'') is a species of legume native to East Asia, widely grown for its edible bean, which has numerous uses. Traditional unfermented food uses of soybeans include soy milk, from which tofu a ...

farm located in Hanceville, Alabama, and to construction costs and materials. The monastery was consecrated in December 1999.

Description

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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 In classical architecture, a colonnade is a long sequence of columns joined by their entablature, often free-standing, or part of a building. Paired or multiple pairs of columns are normally employed in a colonnade which can be straight or cur ...

esplanade An esplanade or promenade is a long, open, level area, usually next to a river or large body of water, where people may walk. The historical definition of ''esplanade'' was a large, open, level area outside fortress or city walls to provide cl ...

and various

cosmatesque Cosmatesque, or Cosmati, is a style of geometric decorative inlay stonework typical of the architecture of Medieval Italy, and especially of Rome and its surroundings. It was used most extensively for the decoration of church floors, but was also u ...

designs. 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. A statue of El Divino Niño is featured prominently one on the side altars of the Shrine, as well as a large statue of the

, holding a heart at His palm, stands at the plaza square. On the liturgical feast day of Divine Child Jesus, balloons are customarily tied to his wrist for this feast. 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 (open for tours Mon-Sat 10AM and 2PM). A large ornate screen behind the High Altar divides the shrine between where the Poor Clare Nuns worship in cloister and where the faithful worship. During construction, a storm struck the area, causing the church cross to be damaged. Initially, Mother Angelica wanted to repair it. Later on, Mother Angelica associated the cross with the

Tau cross The tau cross is a T-shaped cross, sometimes with all three ends of the cross expanded. It is called a “tau cross” because it is shaped like the Greek letter tau, which in its upper-case form has the same appearance as Latin letter T. Anoth ...

. 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 Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

, symbolic of his

pain and suffering Pain and suffering is the legal term for the physical and emotional stress caused from an injury (see also pain and suffering). Some damages that might come under this category would be: aches, temporary and permanent limitations on activity, p ...

at the cross.

Pilgrimages

People from all over the world make pilgrimages to the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament. Pilgrimages consist of individuals or groups.

References

External links

Official website

Granda Liturgical Arts - description of church interior {{Roman Catholic Diocese of Birmingham in Alabama, state=collapsed Convents in the United States Roman Catholic churches in Alabama Churches in Cullman County, Alabama Roman Catholic churches completed in 1999 Christian organizations established in 1999 1999 establishments in Alabama 20th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United States