The Abbey Basilica of Mary Help of Christians, informally known as the Belmont Abbey, is a

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

monastery and a

Minor Basilica Basilicas are Catholic church buildings that have a designation, conferring special privileges, given by the Pope. Basilicas are distinguished for ceremonial purposes from other churches. The building need not be a basilica in the architectura ...

Belmont, North Carolina Belmont is a small Suburb, suburban city in Gaston County, North Carolina, United States, located about east of Gastonia, North Carolina, Gastonia. The population was 10,076 at the 2010 United States census, 2010 census. Once known as Garibaldi ...

United States of America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguo ...

. The building was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1973. The monastery is administered by the American-Cassinese Benedictine Congregation.

Pope Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII (; born Gioacchino Vincenzo Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2March 181020July 1903) was head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 until his death in July 1903. He had the fourth-longest reign of any pope, behind those of Peter the Ap ...

officially declared the monastery an

abbey An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christians, Christian monks and nun ...

on 19 December 1884.

Pope Pius XII Pope Pius XII (; born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli; 2 March 18769 October 1958) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 2 March 1939 until his death on 9 October 1958. He is the most recent p ...

declared Mary Help of Christians its Patroness via his decree ''Perfugium Rebus'' on 5 December 1957.

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

raised the shrine to the status of

Minor basilica Basilicas are Catholic church buildings that have a designation, conferring special privileges, given by the Pope. Basilicas are distinguished for ceremonial purposes from other churches. The building need not be a basilica in the architectura ...

via the

Pontifical Decree A is the official measure with which the Holy See grants to institutes of consecrated life and societies of apostolic life the recognition of ecclesiastical institution of pontifical right. When the decree of praise is issued in the form of an ...

''Sacras Ædes'' on 27 July 1998.

History

The

Catholic priest The priesthood is the office of the ministers of religion, who have been commissioned ("ordained") with the holy orders of the Catholic Church. Technically, bishops are a priestly order as well; however, in common English usage ''priest'' refe ...

, Father Jeremiah O'Connell O.S.B. was a Christian missionary who had built Saint Mary's College in

Columbia, South Carolina Columbia is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is List of municipalities in South Carolina, the second-mo ...

, but it had been destroyed during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

. In 1876 he bought the 500-acre former Caldwell farm and donated it to the Benedictines of

Saint Vincent Archabbey Saint Vincent Archabbey is a Benedictine monastery in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania in the city of Latrobe. A member of the American-Cassinese Congregation, it is the oldest Benedictine monastery in the United States and the largest in th ...

Latrobe, Pennsylvania Latrobe ( ) is a city in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 8,060 as of the 2020 census. A part of the Pittsburgh metropolitan area, it is located near Pennsylvania's scenic Chestnut Ridge. Latrobe was incorpo ...

in hopes they would establish an educational institution in North Carolina. Under the direction of

Abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the head of an independent monastery for men in various Western Christian traditions. The name is derived from ''abba'', the Aramaic form of the Hebrew ''ab'', and means "father". The female equivale ...

Boniface Wimmer Boniface Wimmer, (1809–1887) was a German archabbot who in 1846 founded the first Benedictine monastery in the United States, Saint Vincent Archabbey in Latrobe, Pennsylvania. In 1855, Wimmer founded the American-Cassinese Congregation of ...

of St. Vincent, the Benedictines set about to establish a monastery and college. The monks constructed the buildings from red clay.

issued a decree on 19 December 1884 raising the

priory A priory is a monastery of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. They were created by the Catholic Church. Priories may be monastic houses of monks or nuns (such as the Benedictines, the Cistercians, or t ...

monastery to an ''Abbey of Mary Help of Christians'' and Father Leo Michael Haid was elected the first abbot, a position he held until his death in 1924.Martin Sr, James I
"Belmont Abbey College"
''Encyclopedia of North Carolina'', University of North Carolina Press. 2006. In July 1886, the first three novices professed vows and an alumnus of the college became a novice. That same year, Haid founded a seminary at Belmont. On February 4, 1888, he was appointed Vicar Apostolic of North Carolina and was consecrated bishop at the Baltimore Cathedral by Cardinal James Gibbons on July 1, 1888, becoming the first American abbot-bishop. In May 1891 the ''Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes'' was dedicated as a pilgrimage shrine by Abbot Haid. Katharine Drexel, a benefactor of the monastery and college, visited Belmont Abbey in 1904.

Territorial abbey

From 1910 through 1977, Belmont Abbey was a territorial abbey, exercising some functions of a diocese. It had responsibility for parishes in the North Carolina counties of Gaston, Catawba, Cleveland, Burke, Lincoln, McDowell, Polk, and Rutherford. In 1944, its territory, except for Gaston County, was given to the Diocese of Raleigh. In July 1960, Gaston County too was placed under the Diocese of Raleigh. In 1977, its status as a territorial abbey was suppressed under the Diocese of Charlotte.

Abbey Basilica of Mary Help of Christians

Construction began on the Abbey Church of Mary Help of Christians in 1892 and was completed in 1894. The Abbey Church was dedicated April 11, 1894. The church is a large cruciform plan,

Gothic Revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an Architectural style, architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half ...

style brick church. It has a steep gable roof and the front facade features two towers of unequal size. On July 27, 1998, the Vatican issued a decree elevating the abbey church at Belmont to the rank of a

minor basilica Basilicas are Catholic church buildings that have a designation, conferring special privileges, given by the Pope. Basilicas are distinguished for ceremonial purposes from other churches. The building need not be a basilica in the architectura ...

. The church features a

baptismal font A baptismal font is an Church architecture, ecclesiastical architectural element, which serves as a receptacle for baptismal water used for baptism, as a part of Christian initiation for both rites of Infant baptism, infant and Believer's bapti ...

carved from a stone upon which African American slaves were once sold on the North Carolina market.

Saint Mary's College

Father Herman Wolfe, O.S.B. and two students arrived in April 1876."Belmont Abbey Monastery", Belmont Abbey College
/ref> The first students graduated in 1878. In April 1886 the state of North Carolina issued Saint Mary's College a charter authorizing the abbey/school to grant degrees. Two-thirds of the College Building was destroyed by fire in 1900. Rebuilding began immediately. In 1913 Saint Mary's adopted the Belmont Abbey name. On June 20, 2011, Belmont Abbey College broke ground for a residences for female students with or expecting children—regardless of religious affiliation—that can hold 15 babies, 15 women (who can stay for up to two years), and 8 toddlers at a time, with a shared living room, dining room, and laundry room. The residence, called "Room at the Inn" is operated by a Charlotte, North Carolina-based maternity and aftercare center of the same name. In May 2020, the college announced it was starting a nursing program to address the continuing healthcare needs in Gaston County.Stewart, Gavin
"Belmont Abbey to debut nursing program this fall"
''Gaston Gazette'', May 1, 2020. On July 14, 1993, the central campus was entered on the National Register of Historic Places as the "Belmont Abbey National Historic District."

Present day

The abbey is the motherhouse to

Saint Leo Abbey Saint Leo Abbey is an American-Cassinese monastery of Benedictine monks located in Saint Leo, Florida, United States. History Saint Leo Abbey, located in Pasco County, Florida, traces its beginnings to 1882 when Judge Edmund F. Dunne founde ...

Tampa, Florida Tampa ( ) is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. Tampa's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and t ...

, as well as Mary Mother of the Church Abbey in

Richmond, Virginia Richmond ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. Incorporated in 1742, Richmond has been an independent city (United States), independent city since 1871. ...

. The monks also are the benefactors of Belmont Abbey College, a four-year

liberal arts school. As of 2020, there are about twenty monks at Belmont Abbey.

References

External links

* {{National Register of Historic Places in North Carolina Properties of religious function on the National Register of Historic Places in North Carolina Gothic Revival architecture in North Carolina Belmont Abbey College Benedictine monasteries in the United States Roman Catholic cathedrals in North Carolina Our Lady Mary Help of Christians Basilica Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte Religious organizations established in 1876 Shrines to the Virgin Mary Buildings and structures in Gaston County, North Carolina 1876 establishments in North Carolina National Register of Historic Places in Gaston County, North Carolina Tourist attractions in Gaston County, North Carolina Brick buildings and structures in North Carolina