On the opposite bank of the Thames to Reading is Caversham, where there was in the medieval period a shrine with widespread appeal. This may have been due not only to the actual place of pilgrimage, a small chapel would lay outside the village to the east with its statue of the Virgin but also the patronage of the Lords of the manner, the families of the Marshals, Clares and Despensers.
Today the Shrine has been recreated in the Catholic parish church in an exceedingly effective manner, and is well worth visiting. At its centre is a fine historic Flemish statue of our Lady and the Christ Child. At the end of the last century funds were raised for a crown for the statue which was blessed at an audience in St Peter’s Square by Pope John Paul II, before being formally used to crown Our Lady of Caversham.
My posts about the shrine can be accessed from Marian Pilgrimage - Our Lady of Caversham
May Our Lady of Caversham pray for Pope Leo XIV
No comments:
Post a Comment