Not A Monument, But A 'Must See' In DC
By Winston D. Munnings
24 Jan 2009
Dateline: Washington DC., January 16, 2009 ~~ Each time I visit this historic City (usually twice annually) I always make a pilgrimage to my Alma Mater if only to recall the time spent there as a foreign student, or to recount how The Catholic University of America and this extraordinary City have impacted the course of my life.
For example, had it not been for an unscheduled visit to the CUA campus by the late Bahamas Prime Minister (then Premier Lynden Pindling) back in 1972, I probably would not have been invited to consider a career in the Bahamas Foreign Service when the Islands of The Bahamas got its independence a year later. (The Bahamas became an independent sovereign nation in 1973, and I joined the Diplomatic Service in 1974 and was assigned to the Embassy here as Third Secretary & Vice Consul.)
Although my recent visit here was primarily to witness the historic swearing-in of Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States, I still made my pilgrimage (as always) to the CUA campus and to The Shrine. This Photo Essay, therefore, is not about Washington DC, or about Catholic University. Instead, it is about one of my most favorite places to visit whenever I return to the nation's capital. (Incidentally, The Shrine is on the grounds of Catholic University.)
As a university student in the early 1970's and, like many other students, I spent a lot of time wandering the halls of The Shrine. I went to mass there on a regular basis or visited the cafeteria on The Crypt Level for coffee, lunch or simply to relax or to 'shoot- the-breeze' with other foreign students.
Then, it was called the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. However, Pope John Paul II gave The Shrine Papal Honor and the title Basilica on October 12, 1990. Now it is called – Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. Simply put, The Shrine is the Patron Church of United States Catholics and America's pre-eminent Marion Shrine.
According to the Shrine's Rector, Reverend Monsignor Walter R. Rissi, J.C.L. "...It is a place of pilgrimage and prayer visited by hundreds of thousands of people annually. This majestic church is not only renowned for its beautiful sacred art, but also for its unique architecture and richness in Catholic and American culture..."
What has always fascinated me about The Shrine, however, is the splendor of the more than 70 separate and distinctive Chapels you'll find here when you visit this catholic edifice. These chapels were dedicated by various ethnic groups and religious communities around the world.
From the beginning, The Shrine was envisioned as a gift from all American Catholics to represent the devotion to Mary of many kinds of peoples, cultures, traditions and ethnic backgrounds. The various chapels and oratories, therefore, are filial in that they relate to the Mother Shrine in the country of origin, or the particular religious community to which they are affiliated.
Among its many Chapels and Oratories are Our Lady of Guadalupe, Our Lady of Lourdes, Mary Queen of Ireland, Our Lady of Czestochowa (Poland), Our Lady of China, Our Mother of Africa, Our Lady of LaVang (Vietnam), Our Lady of Vailankanni (India), Our Lady of Altötting (Bavaria/Germany), and many, many more. Our Mother of Africa Chapel and Our Lady of China, however, has always been two of my favorites to visit.
Hopefully these few photographs will entice the viewer, sufficiently, to include the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception during a future visit to the U.S. Capital.
It was very difficult deciding on the images for this Essay as The Shrine, itself, is a Smorgasbord of photo opportunities about the Catholic Church and its history you're not likely to find anywhere else in the United States.
The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception is, indeed, a 'must see' in the Nation's Capital and an experience you're not likely to soon forget.
