The Ave Maria Grotto - Cullman, Alabama
Photographs by © Eric Shindelbower
| Standing with the Child Jesus in her arms,
the Virgin Mary here is known as Our Lady of Prompt Succor, or Our Lady
of Quick Aid. At the viewer's left is St. Benedict, founder of the
Benedictine monks; on the right is his twin sister, St. Scholastica,
foundress of the Benedictine nuns. The Grotto is 27 feet high; 27
feet wide; 27 feet deep; The word grotto means cave and the Ave Maria
Grotto obtains its name from this structure. Brother Joseph
beautified the grotto with its many pieces of colored stone and
glass. He built the Altar using bits of crushed glass, stone and
cement. He also made the stalactites which hang from the ceiling.* * Written by one of the Abbey monks, Father Aloysius Plaisance, OSB. , Ph.D |
St. Bernard Abbey Gallery Subject Gallery
|
* Excerpted from A Self Guided Tour of The
Ave Maria Grotto, by Father Aloysius Plaisance, OSB., Ph.D - St.
Bernard Abbey, Cullman, Alabama. Used by permission and may not be
reproduced without the prior written consent of The St. Bernard Abbey.
Background pattern courtesy of © |
