MAR IAN S H R I N ES
Seven Monuments to Mary Cathedral shrines offer artistic reflection on her model of discipleship BY CHRISTINA GRAY Lead writer, Catholic San Francisco grayc@sfarch.org
L
ike many great cathedrals throughout the world, San Francisco’s was built to honor Mary’s unique role in God’s plan for human salvation. Her model of discipleship as expressed in Scripture offers inspiration to all Christians and is the unifying theme of the seven Marian shrines of St. Mary’s Cathedral. While older churches were built with devotional alcoves and side chapels and altars, St. Mary’s Marian shrines are set like jewels around the perimeter of the cathedral interior, inviting visitors into public reflection and prayer. The openness of the shrines in the sanctuary reflects the communal spirit of prayer established by Vatican II. Archbishop John R. Quinn, Archbishop McGucken’s successor, turned to the Italian artist who had created the majestic sculpture over the entrance to the cathedral, and commissioned Enrico Manfrini to design the first of the 1.5-ton bronze sculptures, each depicting scriptural passages in which Mary played a central role. The shrine sculptures were completed and installed, one at a time, between 1981 and 1996. They are anchored to the walls of the niches by custom-designed structural supports that create an ethereal, “free-floating” effect over simple kneelers.
CATHOLIC SAN FRANCISCO | MAY 2022
Photo by Dennis Callahan
OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE This is the most prominent, and undoubtedly the most visited, shrine at St. Mary’s Cathedral. Pilgrims from around the globe, especially those with origins in the Americas (Our Lady of Guadalupe is known as the patroness of the Americas) pray to the “Queen of the New World” and lay flowers at her feet year-round. According to sacred tradition, Mary appeared to Aztec Christian peasant St. Juan Diego in 1531, 10 years after Mexico’s conquest by Spain. She appeared as an expectant mother of mixed race, signaling her protection for subjugated people. She is venerated by the large Latino-Hispanic population of the Archdiocese of San Francisco, and others, who process together through the city to the shrine during the annual Cruzada Guadalupana (Guadalupe Crusade). The sculpture’s central panel is a traditional Mexican mosaic by artist Jorge Rodriguez Moreno surrounded by a bronze frame designed by Manfrini. The sculpture depicts the “burning bush” encountered by Moses on Mount Sinai, a foretelling of Mary, who was able to carry God incarnate within her without being consumed by his glory. From the plaque: “Listen, my son, to what I tell you now. Do not be troubled or disturbed by anything. Do not fear illness, nor any other distressing occurrence, or pain. Am I not your mother?” ›
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