Our Lady of Puhsarang

Marian title of Kediri (East Java)

The Marian sanctuary known as Gua María Puhsarang (o Gua María Lourdes Pohsarang) is located in the complex of the Holy Catholic Church Mary Puhsarangin the village of Puhsarang, Semen district, Kabupaten (department), Kediri, East Java province, Indonesia. The church is on the hillside of Monte Wilisabout 400 metres above sea level and about 10 km south-west of the city of Kediri.

Main data

Origin and history

The Marian sanctuary known as Gua María Puhsarang (o Gua María Lourdes Pohsarang) is located in the complex of the Holy Catholic Church Mary Puhsarangin the village of Puhsarang, Semen district, Kabupaten (department), Kediri, East Java province, Indonesia. The church is on the hillside of Monte Wilisabout 400 metres above sea level and about 10 km south-west of the city of Kediri.

♪ documented history ♪

La parish and the church of Santa Maria Puhsarang they go back to the first half of the 20th century. The "ancient" church was built in the 1930s on the initiative of the Lazarist missionary P. Jan (Yan) Wolters, CMwith the collaboration of the Dutch architect Henri (Henricus) Maclaine Pont, which designed a temple of unique architecture, merging elements traditional javanese and European / Catholic forms. The most cited date for the construction of the present temple is 1936, year in which this architectural and pastoral project is consumed.

In the parish complex, a small Grotto of Lourdesas a replica of the Grotto of Massabielle in France. With the increase in the influx of the faithful, that first grotto was insufficient, and the 11 October 1998 the construction of a new large Marian grotto, conceived as a much larger scale replica of the Grotto de Lourdes. This work set up the present shrine of Gua María Puhsarangwhich has over time become one of Indonesia's main Catholic pilgrimage centres.

# # Tradition and devotional uses

The local sources describe Puhsarang as a place that, from the beginning, was sought by faithful who wanted to "withdraw" to pray and make silence, especially around the grotto dedicated to the Virgin Mary. It is also noted that the little grotto next to the church was and continues to be frequented not only by Catholics, but also by the faithful of other religionswho come to meditate and present their requests to God through the intercession of the Virgin. However, no specific apparitions or prodigious facts that give rise to a specific foundational legend are documented; the importance of the place comes above all from the missionary history, the peculiar architecture of the sanctuary and the growth of Marian devotion.

The image and the sanctuary

In the center of the sanctuary is the large Marian grotto known as Gua María Lourdes Puhsarang, a monumental reproduction of the Grotto de Lourdes in France. The local media sources describe a image of the Virgin Mary about 3.8 meters highlocated in the main furnace of the grotto, with an artificial rock structure that reaches approximately 18 m high by 17 m ancho. The iconography reproduces the classic model of Our Lady of Lourdes: The Virgin standing, dressed in white, with blue cloak and her hands united in prayer attitude, as represented by the Immaculate in the apparitions to Saint Bernardite. The concrete material of the statue is not detailed in the sources consulted, so that no consta officially if it is stone, cement or other compound.

The sanctuary is part of the complex of the The Catholic Church of Santa María Puhner (Catholic Church of Santa Maria Puhsarang), also called simply Puhnek Church. The parish temple has a very characteristic combination of Javanese forms (structure, decks, local materials) and Latin Catholic liturgical elementsthey have made it an architectural and heritage reference. Various sources of tourism and local media present it as one of the most unique and ancient churches of Kedirias well as an important destination of religious tourism.

According to the sources consulted, the church of Puhsarang is a Latin rite parish under the jurisdiction of the competent diocese in the region (not clearly specified in the sources cited). There is no record that the temple has received the title of minor basilicanor that the Marian sanctuary has been officially declared National sanctuaryIt is therefore officially a local Marian shrine/diocesan within the parish complex.

Sponsorship and coronation

The Marian shrine of Gua María Puhsarang is primarily linked to village of Puhsarang and to the Kediri (East Java). The sources of tourism and local media present it as a reference place for the Catholics of the region and for pilgrims of the different dioceses of Indonesiawithout mention of a specific canonical patronage about the city of Kediri, the diocese or the nation. Therefore, no consta a formal decree declaring her the principal patron of a city, diocese or Indonesia as a whole.

As for a canonical coronation of the image (i.e. a liturgical act officially recognized by the Holy See or by pontifical delegation), in the sources consulted - including the general information of the sanctuary, tourist notes and news reviews - does not contain a documented canonical coronation of the Virgin venerated in Gua Maria Puhsarang.

Party and devotion

The available sources describe the place and the pilgrimages intensively, but do not explicitly indicate a fixed holiday date of their own of "Our Lady of Puhsarang." Since the iconography is Marian type Lourdesit is reasonable to assume a special solemnity around the memory of Our Lady of Lourdes (February 11)However, this link of date is not documented for the sanctuary in the consulted sources, so it cannot be affirmed as a safe data.

La devotion is expressed mainly by numerous pilgrimages. Gua María Puhsarang is described as one of the main centres of pilgrimage and spiritual retreat for the Catholics of Kediri, other cities of Java and even outside Indonesia. It is considered one of the largest Marian shrines in the country, and the grotto is often mentioned as one of the largest replicas of Lourdes in South-East Asia.

The faithful come to pray in silence, light candles, do novies and submit personal requests, taking advantage of the fresh climate and the mountain environment that promotes the recovery. The sources emphasize that the small grotto near the church is also frequented by people of other religions, which gives the place a character of space of prayer and open meditation, although the identity of the sanctuary is clearly Catholic and Marian. In strong times of the liturgical calendar (especially Holy Week and great Marian parties) the influx of pilgrims increases, though no official figures de participación.

Link to the Rosary

The devotion in Puhsarang is very linked to the and Communityand in particular Rosary. The sources indicate that the little grotto next to the church is a place where many faithful come to pray the rosary or the ninthcontinued throughout the year. It is also noted that Gua María Puhsarang, as a Lourdes-style sanctuary, is a privileged place for the repeated and meditative Marian prayertypical of pilgrimages: burning of candles, night prayers and processions. [