Our Lady of Marienstatt

Marian title of Streithausen (Renania- Palatinate)

En Marienstatt, in the Westerwald (municipality of Streithausen, Renania-Palatinado, Germany), the Cistercian abbey of Marienstattwhich gives name to the advocation of Our Lady of Marienstatt. The name "Marienstatt" expressly refers to Mary and is often translated as "city / stay of Mary," underlining the Marian character of the place.

Main data

Origin and history

En Marienstatt, in the Westerwald (municipality of Streithausen, Renania-Palatinado, Germany), the Cistercian abbey of Marienstattwhich gives name to the advocation of Our Lady of Marienstatt. The name "Marienstatt" expressly refers to Mary and is often translated as "city / stay of Mary," underlining the Marian character of the place.

♪ documented history ♪

La Marienstatt Abbey was founded as a Cistercian monastery in the 13th century; the historical sources place it as the foundation of the Order of the Cister in the territory of Westerwald, in the current Rhineland-Palatinate. The monastery has been under the sponsorship of the Virgin Mary, which explains that the sanctuary and Marian devotion develop linked to the monastic and liturgical life of Cistercian.

The monastic church became recognized as church of pilgrimage Marian of the region, with a continuity of worship of the Virgin over the centuries, even in the midst of the religious and political transformations of Germany. The title "Our Lady of Marienstatt" therefore comes from place of worship and of their Marian dedication, and not of a specific extraordinary apparition or event that can be dated with precision.

### Tradition and legend

The sources consulted, of general scope on Marian and encyclopedic advocations, do not explicitly collect a concrete Marian foundational legend (apparition, original miracle, prodigious image finding, etc.) linked to Marienstatt. The devotion seems rather rooted in the Marian character of the Cysterciense foundation and in the history of the monastery as "house of Mary" that in a unique legendary tradition. If there are more precise local legends, no constan in general accessible sources.

—

The image and the sanctuary

♪ ♪ The image

General sources on Marian advocacy do not describe the specific image in detail of Our Lady of Marienstatt (iconographic type, material, style). It does not consist, by these sources, of a Gothic, baroque or other size, or of an image of clothing or sculpture that is free of a certain artistic period. In the absence of verifiable data, it can only be said with certainty that this is a Marian image venerated in the abacial church of Marienstatt; any more precise description no consta.

### The Sanctuary

The advocation is venerated in the Cistercian abbey of Marienstatt, located in Streithausen (Westerwald, Rhinia-Palatinate, Germany). The monastic church is described in the sources as church of pilgrimage regional Marian; its character as a sanctuary derives from the tradition of pilgrimages and the veneration of the Virgin sustained by the monastic community.

The sources consulted do not explicitly indicate that the church of Marienstatt has the title of minor basilicaor that it is a Marian sanctuary declared "national" by the Episcopal Conference; those categories no constan in the general documentation available. The following can be said for sure:

– Es una Cistercian abbey históricamente importante en el Westerwald. – Su iglesia abacial está dedicada a la Virgen y es considerada place of Marian pilgrimage.

Beyond this, detailed architectural data (style, dimensions, concrete artistic elements) do not appear in the general Marian sources consulted.

—

Sponsorship and coronation

# Patronage

For its history and location, Our Lady of Marienstatt is, above all, Patron of the Cistercian monastery itself and Marian reference point for the Westerwald and the surrounding region. The sources consulted do not register a specific decree declaring it an official patron of the diocese or of a wide territory; therefore:

– Local / monastic patronage: claramente ligada a la abadía y a la región de Marienstatt/Westerwald. – Patronazgo diocesan or nacional: no consta in general sources available.

# # Canonical coronation

In the repertory of Marian advocations and in the general documentation consulted no reference to a canonical coronation of the image of Our Lady of Marienstatt (with date, pontifical decree or papal delegate). Therefore, according to the requested rule:

– Canon coronation: does not contain a documented canonical coronation.

—

Party and devotion

General sources of Marian advocacy do not indicate a specific liturgical holiday date of Our Lady of Marienstatt that is recognized beyond the local realm. It is likely that, as in other Cistercian monasteries, the liturgical calendar will place special emphasis on Marian parties such as the Solemnity of Holy Mary Mother of God, la Announcement, la Assumption o la Nativity of MaryHowever, a "patron feast of Our Lady of Marienstatt" with a specific date no consta in accessible sources.

La devotion se articula principalmente a través de:

– La Vida liturgica monástica, centrada en la Eucaristía y la Liturgia de las Horas, con especial énfasis mariano propio de la tradición cisterciense. – La condición de "pilgrimage church"which indicates a stable flow of pilgrims and devoted groups who come to the monastery to pray before the image of the Virgin and participate in the celebrations.

Quantitative inflow data (number of pilgrims per year, large concentrations, etc.) no constan in general sources about Marian advocacy. No specific popular traditions (specific processions, unique promises, characteristic exvotes) linked to this advocation in these sources are mentioned; therefore, any more detailed local devotional custom cannot be said rigorously. from the documentation consulted.

—

Link to the Rosary

The specific sources on Marienstatt do not mention a particular and documented link of this advocation with the prayer of the Rosary (for example, historical fellowship of the Rosary, great rosaries of pilgrims, special indulgences linked to this image, etc.). Therefore, it can only be stated with certainty:

– explicit link with the Rosary: no consta in accessible documentation.

However, in Catholic theology and spirituality, every Marian advocation is naturally seen in the life of the Church. accompanied and deepened by the prayer of the Rosary. The Rosary, in contemplating the mysteries of Christ's life with Mary, offers:

– Un modo sencillo y a la vez profundo de unirse a la liturgia y a la oración de la Iglesia, muy en sintonía con la tradición monástica. – Una forma de inner pilgrimage: who goes to a Marian sanctuary, like Marienstatt, prolongs and feeds his visit by praying the joyful, painful, glorious and luminous mysteries, recognizing in Mary the Mother and Lady of the place.

Thus, even if there is no specific historical relationship known between Our Lady of Marienstatt and a specific rosarian event, the Rosary is presented as a privileged road to live and guard this devotion: it unites the Cistercian tradition of contemplation with the meditation of the mysteries of Christ from the hand of Mary, honored in Marienstatt as Lady and Mother of the community.