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Basilica of Our Lady of Good Health
(Velankanni, India)
The Basilica of Our Lady of Good Health is located at the small town of Velankanni in the state of Tamil Nadu in southern India. The Roman Catholic Latin Rite Basilica is devoted to Our Lady of Good Health. Devotion to Our Lady of Good Health of Velankanni can be traced to the mid-16th century and is attributed to three miracles at sites around where the Basilica stands: the apparition of Mary and the Christ Child to a slumbering shepherd boy, the curing of a lame buttermilk vendor, and the rescue of Portuguese sailors from a violent sea storm.[1] There is no written or attested records which support this and is based sorely on oral tradition. The Holy See has not approved these apparitions.
The chapel was finally built by Portuguese sailors. More than 500 years later, the nine-day festival and celebration is still observed and draws nearly 2 million pilgrims each year. The Shrine of Our Lady of Vailankanni, also known as the "Lourdes of the East,"[2] is one of the most-frequented religious sites in India.
History
Though there are no historical documents or records about the apparitions of Mary at Vailankanni, Only oral tradition is the source of the two apparitions of the Blessed Mother of Vailankanni in the 16th century and the saving of the Portuguese sailors from a tempest in the Bay of Bengal in the later 17th century.[3]
The shrine that started as a thatched chapel in the mid-sixteenth century became a parish church in 1771 when Catholics in India were under persecution from the Dutch. Later in 1962 it was granted a Special status of a Minor Basilica by Pope John XXIII.
The shrine of Vailankanni was elevated to the status of 'Minor Basilica' and merged with the Major Basilica of Mary (Mary majore) in Rome on 3 November 1962 by Pope John XXIII.
Basic Information
| Year consecrated: | 1962 |
| Ecclesiastical status: | Minor Basilica |
| Architectural style: | Gothic |
| Address: | Velankanni Tamil Nadu, India |
| Coordinates: | 10.68, 79.849722 |
| Website: | http://www.vailankannishrine.org |
| Phone: | --- |
| Hours: | --- |
| Cost: | --- |
| Transportation: | --- |
| Lodging: |
Note: This information was accurate when first published and we do our best to keep it updated, but details such as opening hours can change without notice. To avoid disappointment, please check with the site directly before making a special trip.
