Ermita de la Caridad inicia Año Jubilar

By Rocio Granados - La Voz Catolica

MIAMI | With a Mass presided by Archbishop Thomas Wenski, the National Shrine of Our Lady of Charity, also known as “la Ermita,” kicked off a jubilee year marking the 50th anniversary of its consecration, a year of grace highlighted by Pope Francis’ granting of a plenary indulgence.

During a solemn ceremony 49 years ago, Dec. 2, 1973, the shrine was dedicated and blessed by Cardinal John Joseph Krol, then archbishop of Philadelphia and president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. Also present were Miami’s first archbishop, Coleman F. Carroll; Bishop Eduardo Boza Masvidal, Havana’s auxiliary bishop who was living in exile in Venezuela; and a young priest, also an exile, Father Agustín Román.

“I was also present. I was a seminarian and there were thousands and thousands of people at that very moving Mass,” said Archbishop Wenski during his homily at the Dec. 2, 2022 Mass kicking off the jubilee.

Father Juan Sosa, pastor of St. Joseph Church in Miami Beach, also a seminarian then, was present at the blessing of the cornerstone in 1967, and later at the dedication of the sanctuary. "I remember the enthusiasm of the people, the devotion they had for the Virgin," said the priest.

It was that devotion to Our Lady of Charity, evinced by Cuban exiles who had fled the island since the early 1960s, that prompted Archbishop Carroll, in 1966, to urge them to build a sanctuary to their patroness here in Miami. He not only encouraged them: He gave them the land next to Biscayne Bay where the sanctuary stands today.

“In order to encourage and guide that project, he appointed a young priest as chaplain who in a short time won the affection of the people. It was Father Agustín Aleido Román, who years later would be auxiliary bishop of Miami, and who knew how to direct the mission of the shrine for decades with such success and pastoral sensibility,” said Archbishop Wenski.

 

‘A SIGN OF FAITH’

"For me this shrine means a lot for the diaspora, because it is the work of exiles, the people who left their homeland precisely because they were oppressed by an atheist system, and knew how to leave a sign of faith," said the fondly remembered Bishop Román in an archived television interview. The footage is now included in a video made for the jubilee and posted on the shrine’s Facebook page. Bishop Román died April 11, 2012.

The most interesting thing about the shrine “is how it was built. Penny by penny that people collected, and Bishop Román would take a sack full of pennies to the bank every week,” said Roberto Cortés, a parishioner at San Lázaro in Hialeah who attended the jubilee Mass.

Cortés added that a sample of those pennies is ensconced under the altar of the shrine along with some soil from Cuba.

Bishop Román insisted that the shrine be built through the efforts of the people, and at a time when many Cubans could not afford to have their own house, they were able to build a beautiful house for their patron saint. "It was the poor, simple people, who worked in factories, who worked picking tomatoes, washing dishes, cleaning houses, and these people always collected their pennies and brought them," said Bishop Román in the video.

The shrine is located in a spot whose waters touch Cuba. “It is a symbolism that, for us who are Cubans, represents a lot,” said Cortés, who lived for many years in Venezuela and arrived with his family in Miami 20 years ago.

Archbishop Wenski mentioned the great affection Bishop Román had for the shrine and recalled his words: “And to my people, who have built it with the sweat and tears of exile, I ask you to continue taking care of it, so that, when future generations contemplate it, they do not forget that the faith of a people moved mountains."

"And during these years, the Virgin of Charity, from this sanctuary, has not stopped for a moment covering everyone with her sacred mantle," said Archbishop Wenski, noting how she has been a permanent presence, accompanying the exiles since her image arrived in the United States on Sept. 8, 1961 — and she was received during a massive Mass attended by more than 30,000 who filled what was then Bobby Maduro stadium.

 

UNDER HER MANTLE

"The sanctuary has the shape not of a cone, but of the mantle of the Virgin, so that when we enter the Ermita de la Caridad we feel sheltered, protected under the mantle of the Virgin," explained Father Juan Rumín Domínguez in the jubilee video. He served as rector of the shrine from October 2010 to November 2016 and is now parochial vicar at St. Joseph in Miami Beach.

In 1977, the shrine’s mural, by Cuban painter Teok Carrasco, was unveiled. It overlooks the sanctuary, showing 63 figures related to Cuban history with Our Lady of Charity at its center. In 2000, the U.S. Bishops named la Ermita a national shrine.

What should be highlighted about the shrine, said Julio Estorino, a Cuban journalist and writer, is that “this sanctuary was erected to honor God through his Blessed Mother and with a fundamental purpose, to pray for the freedom of Cuba. Of course, all prayers are welcome, but that is the main mission of this sanctuary.”

The shrine “was the dream of Bishop Román and it was the dream of so many Cubans who have left their tears here for Cuba. Later, brothers from other countries came and were very welcome, also with their problems, also to pray. For this reason: It is the mother's house, and the children take all their pain to their mother," Estorino said.

Archbishop Wenski prayed that, as the jubilee year celebrates the shrine’s five decades of incessant evangelizing work, God will "continue to bless all those who have served and serve in this sanctuary, its priests, the Daughters of Charity, the employees and especially, all the members of the Archconfraternity of Our Lady of Charity of El Cobre, for their effort and generosity to serve through the missionary work of the shrine.”

The jubilee Mass was concelebrated by Bishop Dionisio García Ibáñez, archbishop of Santiago de Cuba, who was visiting Miami; Bishop Enrique Delgado, auxiliary bishop of Miami; Father José Espino, current rector of the shrine; Father Domínguez; and several archdiocesan priests. Also attending the Mass was Luis Gutiérrez Areces, who brought the image of the Virgin from Cuba in 1961.

“What a joy that the people of this city, of this nation, pray to the Virgin and to God under the title of our patron saint, the Virgin of Charity of El Cobre. Wherever there is a Cuban, the Virgin goes, also making the pilgrimage with him," said Archbishop García. He added that "now that so many Cubans are outside the homeland, we are going to ask the Lord that this year be a year of grace; and may mercy, forgiveness, and reconciliation also be present in our homeland, in all Cubans wherever we are. May the Lord help us."

 

PLENARY INDULGENCE

“We begin a year of grace, a year of joy. The pope gave permission to grant the plenary indulgence here in the sanctuary,” said Father Espino after the Mass.

The indulgence is valid from Dec. 2, 2022 to Dec. 2, 2023, for the faithful who attend the sacred rites at the shrine and comply with the usual conditions of confessing their sins, receiving Communion and praying for the intentions of the pope.

At the conclusion of the Mass, Archbishop Wenski delivered a papal blessing that extended to all who were not present, but who followed the celebration through radio, television or the internet.

During this jubilee year, said Father Espino, the history of the shrine will be celebrated, devotion to the Virgin renewed, the archconfraternity renewed, and the shrine itself will be renovated, since the wear and tear of half a century of daily use is readily apparent.

Father Espino also is planning to have more priests available for confessions and for events related to the National Eucharistic Revival, which is in its first year and also involves confession and preparation.

At the end of the ceremony, a representative of Congresswoman María Elvira Salazar presented Archbishop Wenski with a proclamation recognizing the importance of la Ermita as a local and national cultural, tourist, and religious icon.

Father Espino called it a recognition of the service of the shrine to the archdiocese, because it is a national sanctuary, the only one in South Florida. He added that the shrine receives pilgrims from different parts of the city and the country, “and also at this moment the migrants who are arriving from Cuba and from other places, whom we guide and help.”