Basilica of the National Shrine of Mary, Queen of the Universe
The Basilica of the National Shrine of Mary, Queen of the Universe, is a 17-acre wooded sanctuary in Doctor Phillips Florida. This magnificent place of worship has become one of the most popular Catholic pilgrimage destinations in the United States. Here’s a quick rundown of this wonderful place’s history, from inception through the first mass.
A new perspective
Dr. Philllips began to see an increase in total tourism after the launch of Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom in 1971. Visitors flocked from all over the world to watch Mickey and his friends perform, and they also spent their days exploring “The City Beautiful” by shopping at local farmers’ markets, visiting local parks, and more. The Diocese of Orlando noticed an enormous Catholic population in the area due to the hundreds of fresh visitors each day.
These visitors to Orlando frequently turned their hearts and minds to God, and they wanted a place to pray while they were here. Despite the Diocese’s efforts to hold huge masses in local hotels, attendance continued to rise. Soon after, the Diocese chose Father F. Joseph Harte as pastor of Orlando’s Holy Family Parish. After noticing the growing desire for a more permanent holy experience, he began following a vision. He intended to build a place where this “tourist ministry” might flourish — a place where practicing Catholics from all over the world could find peace in God and celebrate the Holy Mass with others who shared their precious faith.
The vast project’s fundraising began in 1979, the Vatican’s encyclical commemorating Mary’s Coronation as a memorial for the Catholic Church. As a result, the powers determined to turn this massive basilica into a shrine to Mary, Queen of the Universe.
Finally, a sacred site
Finally, after successful fundraising efforts, the first construction phase began on December 8, 1984. A tiny piece of the basilica was completed two years later, and work on an outdoor chapel, and its associated 80-foot (24.3-meter) bell tower began. Archbishop Pio Laghi, the Papal Nuncio, visited the Shrine in 1986 and received the Holy Father’s blessing for the ministry.
Construction on the main church, which is expected to house 2,000 or more people, began on August 22, 1990. They used a 56,000-square-foot (5,202.5-square-meter) interior, 68,000 individual roof tiles and wall-length stained-glass windows depicting Mary and her Son to construct the main worship area. The Crucified Christ sculpture, weighing 650 pounds (294.8 kilograms), was commissioned to hang suspended above the main altar.
Even though the Shrine was open to all worshippers, work proceeded into the 1990s and the new millennium. Father F. Joseph Harte technically retired in 2007, but his vision for the basilica lives on as the Shrine remains a place of love and worship for all.
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