Marian devotion
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On a side of Xiulin, near the city of Hualien and in front of the great mountain relief of eastern Taiwan, is the Sanctuary of Our Lady of the Poor. This place moved to the Taiwanese Church the Marian message of Bannux: prayer, compassion and closeness to those who suffer from poverty of body or spirit.
Chinese name: The Sacred Virgin Sanctuary.
Place: Jinlan 2-9, Shuiyuan, Xiulin, Hualien.
Project start: 1996.
Consecration of the sanctuary and the image: 3 October 1998.
Prosecutor: Monsignor Paul Shan Kuo- hsi, then Bishop of Hualien.
Jurisdiction: Catholic diocese of Hualien.
Invocation of origin: Our Lady of the Poor of Banneux.
From Banneux to the eastern coast of Taiwan
The title was born in Bannux, Belgium, where Mariette Beco claimed to have seen the Virgin eight times between 15 January and 2 March 1933. Mary presented herself as "the Virgin of the Poor" and led the girl to a source for all nations. The Bishop of Liège finally recognized the reality of the apparitions and his message in 1949.
In 1996, Bishop Paul Shan received an image of this advocation from a Chinese immigrant resident in Milan. He decided to raise a diocesan sanctuary for her on a side of Xiulin, about a hundred meters high. Priests and faithful collaborated in their construction until the solemn consecration of the sanctuary and of the image 3 October 1998.
A place to present all poverty
The title does not reduce poverty to lack of property. Before Mary, there is also disease, loneliness, family fragility, uprooting and the need for hope. The spirituality of the place invites to unite prayer with concrete help to the neighbor.
The complex has a church, chapel or Marian pavilion, fourteen stations on the road to the crucis and an outer meeting space. It serves the faithful of Hualien and Taitung for retreats, pilgrimages and diocesan encounters.
The image
The iconography follows the model described by Mariette Beco: Mary appears young, with her hands together and her eyes tilted maternally. The gesture expresses closeness, listens and calls to pray much. The venerated image in Xiulin was donated from Milan and consecrated along with the sanctuary.
Verified location
The diocese publishes the direction Jinlan 2-9, Shuiyuan village, Xiulin municipality. The full map code of the sanctuary focuses on 23.9938125, 121.5488125. The marker corresponds to the hillside enclosure and not to the nearby church of San Agustín de Shuiyuan.
Prayer to Our Lady of the Poor of Xiulin
Our Lady of the Poor, Mother of the Savior and Mother of God, receives the needs that we bring to your sanctuary in Xiulin. Come closer to those who lack bread, health, home or comfort; in us is a concrete and perseverant charity. He blesses Hualien, his people, and those who live between the ocean and the mountains. Take us always to Jesus, the source of all grace. Amen.
Sources consulted
- Diocese of Hualien: history, consecration, facilities and direction.
- GCatholic: Sanctuary condition, jurisdiction and precise location.
- China Regional Liturgical Commission: Repertoire of Taiwanese Marian Sanctuaries.
- Official Sanctuary of Bannux: history of the eight apparitions.
- Official Shrine of Bannux: Ecclesial Recognition of 1949.
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