Sheshan () - History of the Marian Shrine of China

The heart of the Catholic faith in the People's Republic of China

A colina, a promesa, a fe

Sheshan - literally "mountain of hezos" - is a modest hill of just 97 meters of altitude located about 30 kilometres south-west of Shanghai. However, its spiritual height far exceeds the geographical one: it is the most important Marian pilgrimage place in all of China and one of the most unique Catholic shrines in the world.

The Christian presence in Sheshan dates back to the 17th century, when the Jesuits established a small residence there. But it was in 1871 that the first church dedicated to Our Lady of Sheshan was built on the foundations of a previous hermitage. The impulse came from the Jesuits who returned from the missions after years of persecution and closure, with the heart full of gratitude to the Virgin for having survived.

The Basilica of Our Lady of Sheshan (1925)

At the beginning of the 20th century, the growing devotion of the Catholic faithful in the Shanghai region required a larger church. Thus, between 1923 and 1925, the present Basilica of Our Lady of Sheshan, of a Romany-Lombard style, was erected, crowned by a golden statue of the Virgin, which extends her arms over the Chinese horizon.

The basilica occupies the top of the hill, which is accessed by a step of about 300 steps. Each of these steps is, for pilgrims, a prayer: the custom of going up by praying the rosary turns ascension into a Via Cruces of filial love to Mary. Along the way, small chapels and hornadines jalonate the journey, inviting meditation.

The Cultural Revolution: the time of the trial (1966- 1976)

With the Cultural Revolution promoted by Mao Zedong since 1966, all places of worship in China were closed or destroyed. Sheshan was no exception: the basilica was closed, desecrated and converted into other uses. Religious images were removed or destroyed and access to the faithful was prohibited.

Those years of forced silence did not, however, extinguish the faith of Chinese Catholics. In the underground, many continued to pray for China and for the intercession of Our Lady of Sheshan. Devotion survived in homes, in hearts, in the whisper of night prayers.

Restoration and rebirth (since 1988)

After the end of the Cultural Revolution and the progressive religious opening that followed the reforms of Deng Xiaoping, the Sheshan shrine was restored and reopened to veneration in 1988. Since then, especially in May, thousands of pilgrims from all over China have come to the hill to honor the Virgin.

The May pilgrimage - which ends on the 24th, the feast of Our Lady Helper - has become the most visible expression of Catholic vitality in China. In those days, the staircase is filled with faithful of all ages: old people who go up in sticks, families with young children, young university students, all praying the rosary steps to steps.

Pope Benedict XVI and the Day of the Virgin of Sheshan (2007)

On 27 May 2007, Pope Benedict XVI published a pastoral letter to the Catholics of China, in which he instituted the May 24 as the Day of Prayer for the Church in China, putting that day under the protection of Our Lady of Sheshan. It was a gesture of unprecedented spiritual closeness to a community that, divided between the official Church and the underground, had been suffering in silence for decades.

A sanctuary, two Churches, one faith

One of Sheshan's particularities is that it is venerated both by the Catholics of the "patriotic" Church (officially registered in China) and those of the "underground" Church (in full communion with Rome). In devotion to the Virgin of Sheshan, both communities - so often separated by history and politics - find a point of union and hope.