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| Fr. José Manuel,
director of the Shrine, opening the door for the dedication P. José Manuel, Direktor des Heiligtums, öffnet das Tor für die Weihe. |
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| Procession
to the Shrine: Sr. M. Katrin Fabig, Sr. Antonieta Lammer, and the
architect, Maria de la Paz Layva Prozession zum Heiligtum, rechts Sr. Katrin Fabig, Sr. Antonieta Lammer und die Architektin Maria de la Paz Leyva. |
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| The picture
of the Mother Thrice Admirable is carried to the Shrine Das Bild der Dreimal Wunderbaren Mutter auf dem Weg ins Heiligtum. |
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| The new City
Shrine of Madrid El Santuario-Ciudad de Madrid Das neue Stadtheiligtum von Madrid. |
| Fotos: Aileen Lütjens, Madrid © 2001 |
(P. Sidney Fones) On the Feast of the Holy Trinity, June 10, Auxiliary Bishop Cesar Franco of Madrid dedicated the City Shrine of Madrid, (Serrano 97). Approximately 1,000 persons joined in the celebration, among them several representatives of Ecclesial Movements. This Shrine is a dream come true of the Madrid Schoenstatt Movement - the dream to erect a Shrine in the Center of the city as a place of prayer and birthplace of sanctity lived within the world.
The celebration took place in the yard of a nearby Trade Company Institute. The Eucharist was celebrated there in a wide tent and in an excellent climate. At the end of the Mass, the bishop and representatives of the various groups of the Movement walked across the street to the Shrine, while the other participants could participate via audio and video transmission; a gigantic screen provided "live atmosphere".
Schoenstatt for the Church in the World
After the celebration, the Madrid Schoenstatt family invited all of the 1,000 participants for a reception with good Spanish wine, refreshments and fine food - all for free of course on this feast day. At this time, the greetings and wishes that had come in from all over the world were read. Around 4:00PM, the feast ended. The joy and gratitude of the Schoenstatt members was tangible - the joy in the Mother Thrice Admirable's new place from where she will dispense gifts and graces and draw youthful hearts to her. The Madrid Schoenstatt Family sees the new Shrine as gift to the church and the city of Madrid, in view of a commitment for the future generations. The words inscribed on the corner stone are a program: "Schoenstatt for the church in the world."