Bringing The Grotto to You

A Place of Sanctuary

Gardens open and free to all

The Grotto is committed to being a place of prayer for our community. For now, our gardens remain open, and admission charges to the Upper Gardens are suspended through March 31 to allow for people to take refuge in nature - well suited for social distancing - during this time. All are welcome to visit our outdoor sanctuary; you can just walk right in.

Open hours are 9 a.m - 6:30 p.m. Please check our website as these guidelines may change in upcoming days.

Series continues

For all those unable to visit, we thought we would share a piece of The Grotto with you each day until Masses resume. We hope this feature, A Place of Sanctuary: Bringing The Grotto to You , brings you joy, and we pray we will see you all at The Grotto soon.

May you, too, experience the peace our visitors and pilgrims encounter in the spiritual and natural beauty of our holy sanctuary.

Day 3: St. Anne's Chapel

History of the chapel

This small, chapel-like building honors St. Anne, the mother of Mary.

Built in 1934 to house the Blessed Sacrament during the first United State Marian Congress, it is the oldest building at The Grotto.

Below is a photo from the event. We have highlighted an area (look for the box on the left side of the frame) where you can see the chapel through the trees. It was later moved to the site of the temporary altar seen here, where it still sits today.

The trees have certainly grown.

Over 60,000 pilgrims came to the Marian Congress August 12-15, 1934, to celebrate. Below is another photo from the event.

Many more historic photos, such as this one, can be viewed in our Visitor Center.

Early years

The building continued to serve as a chapel until The Grotto's Chapel of Mary was built in 1955.

The following two photos are from the 1950s, showing inside and out.

The chapel today

Now, St . Anne's Chapel houses numerous Madonna paintings from many countries.

About St. Anne

St. Anne is the mother of Mary and the grandmother of Jesus.

Although not mentioned in the Bible, early Christian tradition held that Anne and Joachim were the parents of Mary and the grandparents of Jesus.

Their feast day in the Catholic calendar is celebrated on July 26th. A church in Jerusalem was erected in honor of Anne and Joachim in the 5th century.

Because tradition tells us that Anne and Joachim were childless for many years, St. Anne is the patron of childless couples, women in labor, and mothers.

A Prayer to St. Anne

O Glorious St. Anne, you are compassionate toward those in need who call to you for help.

I place myself before you, and ask that you assist me to unburden myself with these worries, concerns, and intentions: (Here mention your requests.)

I ask that you place my concerns before Our Lord Jesus Christ, and seek the loving aid of your daughter, the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Above all, obtain for me the gift of one day seeing Almighty God face to face, with you and Mary and all the saints, honoring and praising God through all eternity.

Pray for us, St. Anne. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Gracious God, mercifully grant to us who honor St. Anne, the grace of happiness in this life, and the joy of life with You for all eternity.

Amen.

A photographer's favorite

St. Anne's Chapel is one of the most photographed places at The Grotto. A symbol of The Grotto to many people, it is also referred to as "The Little Red Chapel."

We hope you will enjoy the following photographs, taken throughout the year, and you will come and and take your own photos very soon.

Winter: