Our Lady of the Enclosed Garden

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The

The hermitage was founded in 2001 as the dwelling of a diocesan hermit. As is typical of Dutch hermitages, it includes a public chapel that has a distinct role in popular devotions, in this case, to the Virgin Mary. It is the northernmost Marian shrine in the Netherlands.

History

The hermitage in Warfhuizen is a continuation of the tradition of hermits which arose in

After a slow decline since the 1880s, the number of Roman Catholic hermits in Europe started to increase again towards the end of the 20th century, although the Netherlands initially lagged in this development. There have always been members of religious orders who lived as hermits, but 'true hermits' became extinct after 1930, and hermitages were left empty and mostly disappeared. In 2001, the empty Protestant church in the village of Warfhuizen was acquired by Catholics, and a simple dwelling was built into the bay adjacent to the tower, which has since been inhabited by a hermit named Brother Hugo. The rest of the building serves as a chapel. Brother Hugo belongs to the Diocese of Groningen-Leeuwarden, and was ordained a priest September 2015.^[2]

Since the Second Vatican Council revitalised the eremitic ideal, a small amount of new legislation has been created. The Code of Canon Law, can. 603,^[3] requires hermits to be more secluded than was the existing custom in the Netherlands. As a result, there is an enclosed area in Warfhuizen in which the hermit lives and works. In the chapel, this is demarcated by the large rood screen which separates the choir from the nave that the public may access.

Office and customs

Similar to contemplative monasteries, the Office is kept in Warfhuizen. In Western Christianity, that is often prayed in accordance with the precepts of Saint Benedict, but in 2009, the hermit switched to the Office of Saint John Cassian from the 5th century. John of Cassian based his schedule on the customs of the hermits in the Egyptian desert, the so-called Desert Fathers, making it very suitable for hermits.

Instead of the eight (usually short) Benedictine offices, Cassian prescribes two (longer) vigils, one at the start and one at the end of the night. In Warfhuizen, these vigils are sung softly in Latin. The other hours do not have an office with Psalms, but are prayed in silence using the Jesus Prayer.

As such, the Office currently used in Warfhuizen clearly deviates from that of the ancient Dutch hermits, who usually used an abbreviated

Since May 2009, the Bishop of Groningen-Leeuwarden has permitted Eucharistic adoration at the hermitage. Since then, daily adoration and the Rosary for pilgrims takes place at 4 pm.

Warfhuizen as a Marian pilgrimage site

Most visitors specifically come to venerate Mary. This began after a life-size processional statue of Our Lady of Sorrows, named the “Sorrowful Mother of Warfhuizen”, was enshrined in the chapel. The statue appealed to the local and foreign faithful that the chapel became a pilgrimage site.

• 
  The enclosure-grill of the roof screen
• 
  The great cross, a recent copy after the Italian sculptor Pietro Tacca

See also

• Marian art in the Catholic Church
• Marian devotions
• Roman Catholic Mariology

References

External links

Dutch Rijksmonument 24010

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Voormalige Hervormde Kerk (Warfhuizen).

• Website of the hermitage
• Website of the shrine
• Diary of Brother Hugo (in Dutch)
• Miguel Bejarano Moreno (in Spanish)

53°20′34″N 6°25′30″E / 53.3428°N 6.4249°E / 53.3428; 6.4249