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The Shrine Church
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The Shrine Church, done in the Romanesque style, will be the heart of the Shrine. It is the goal of every pilgrim to enter the Church and to pray there, especially before the Blessed Sacrament reposed in the tabernacle, directly behind the altar of sacrifice and beneath the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Pilgrims will come to the Shrine Church, most of all, to receive God's forgiveness in the Sacrament of Penance and to participate in the Holy Mass. Through her beautiful image behind the altar of sacrifice, Our Lady of Guadalupe will continue her mission of bringing Christ to us and bringing us to Christ. In the transepts and along the side aisles will be many devotional areas, dedicated to our Lord and His Blessed Mother, and to the saints, especially Saint Joseph and Saint Juan Diego. Stained-glass windows will depict the life of the Blessed Mother and titles of honor from the Litany of Loretto will be etched in gold-leaf throughout the main floor. The church will seat approximately 400 people on the upper level. The crypt of the Shrine Church will have a hall of donors, in which gifts to the Shrine will be appropriately memorialized. It will also have additional devotional areas, and a smaller chapel for prayer services, penitential services and spiritual presentations. A beautiful bronze image of the apparition of Our Lady of Guadalupe on the tilma of Saint Juan Diego in the presence of Bishop Juan de Zumárraga will be placed in the plaza of the Shrine Church. Construction for this beautiful church was begun on May 13, 2004 and continues. The corner stone was blessed and placed by Archbishop Raymond L. Burke on May 19, 2005. You may watch the progress by clicking here for construction updates.
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