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Religion and Faith – Pilgrimages

Consecrations of Catholic pilgrimage sites

After its completion, each church is consecrated to the protection of a certain saint or several saints. By consecration, the particular church is placed under a kind of surveillance by a saint. This act appoints a divine helper to the people present in the given place. The protection is traditionally connected with Virgin Mary, often with reflection to an event from her life or miracles connected with her person. Another custom is consecration to the protection of the Holy Trinity, which is the image of God in three persons. In Bohemia, great respect was shown to the land patrons (e.g. St. Wenceslas). Moravian pilgrimage tradition is strongly linked to the mission of Saints Cyril and Methodius, whereas in Bohemia, we cannot find any pilgrimage site dedicated to these Slavic apostles. In border areas, we can find influences in German settlements caused by the worship of other patrons.

Českomoravská Fatima. Pilgrimage site in Koclířov near Svitavy; since 1995 in the former Redemptorist monastery built after the mid-19th century. Photo Eva Semotanová, 2019.

Franciscan monastery in Hejnice with Basilica of the Visitation of Our Lady. Photo Silvie R. Kučerová, 2010.

Kalvárie, a pilgrimage site at the village of Ostré (Úštěk). Photo Zdeněk Kučera, 2013

References

Kučera, Z. – Bláha, J. D. – Kučerová, S. – Hupková, M. – Reeves, D.: Katolická poutní místa v Česku na počátku 21. století podle konání poutě během kalendářního roku. Praha 2012;
Kučerová, S. – Kučera, Z. – Reeves, D. – Hupková, M.: Poutní místa v kulturním dědictví české společnosti, Geografické rozhledy 20, č. 4, 2011, s. 22–23;
Semotanová, E. – Zudová-Lešková, Z. ‒ Močičková, J. – Cajthaml, J. ‒ Seemann, P. ‒ Bláha, J. D. a kol.: Český historický atlas. Kapitoly z dějin 20. století. Praha 2019.


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Pilgrim’s journeys to Catholic pilgrimage sites during the calendar year

People can set out for a pilgrimage anytime and anywhere, but most pilgrimage sites have an appointed pilgrimage time once/several times a year, i.e. on a particular day or more days when the site is open to the public and the services are held there. The map shows information only on Catholic pilgrimage sites where a relatively continuous presence of a religious pilgrimage tradition can be assumed, based on available information, and which are still alive today. The date of the pilgrimage is linked to one of the celebrations or holidays during the liturgical year or a festival relating to the subject of the pilgrimage.

The pilgrimage site of Stará Boleslav, according to the legend the place of assassination of later canonized duke Wenceslas in 935, in: Ottovy Čechy, IV. díl Polabí, Praha 1888. The Library of Institute of History, CAS.

References

Kučera, Z. – Bláha, J. D. – Kučerová, S. – Hupková, M. – Reeves, D.: Katolická poutní místa v Česku na počátku 21. století podle konání poutě během kalendářního roku. Praha 2012;
Kučerová, S. – Kučera, Z. – Reeves, D. – Hupková, M.: Poutní místa v kulturním dědictví české společnosti, Geografické rozhledy 20, č. 4, 2011, s. 22–23;
Semotanová, E. – Zudová-Lešková, Z. ‒ Močičková, J. – Cajthaml, J. ‒ Seemann, P. ‒ Bláha, J. D. a kol.: Český historický atlas. Kapitoly z dějin 20. století. Praha 2019.


Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 4.0

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