Arch City Religion

In 1937, a man began building statues out of the rocks in his area with his own bare hands. Twenty years later the thousands of rocks were used and dozens of statues and shrines were made from the blood and sweat of Brother Bronislaus of the Franciscan Brothers. The location of the shrines and statues are now known as the Black Madonna Shrine. The Black Madonna Shrine holds substantial cultural significance in the context of the Saint Louis area because in bringing this artifact to the United States, pieces of the original European way of life were carried along, the Franciscan Missionary Brothers were able to make their impact in the region, and the ideologies of the Franciscan Brothers helped shape religious practices in the area.

Comparing the Black Madonna to Saint Louis’s most popular religious foundation

Black Madonna is a popular religious symbol that has parts of her history shared and assimilated throughout the globe. Some see her as the mother of Jesus Christ, others believe Black Madonna represents a religion by herself. There are traces of religious ideology and representations of the Black Madonna even in other religions’ deities such as the Egyptian goddess Isis. Approximately 25% of the Saint Louis religious population affiliate themselves as Catholics, which is also the highest percent for a single religious tradition. According to the historian Malgorzata Oleszkiewicz-Peralba:

Greek Diana/Roman Venus was a Virgin Mother Goddess of fertility…Isis appears as a direct predecessor to the Virgin Mary figure. Isis is represented as a black figure seated on throne with her divine child Horus on her lap…Similarly, Mary in numerous renditions is portrayed as black, sitting on a throne with her divine child on her lap. 

In other words, the Black Madonna and Mary share a similar history along with portrayal among their followers as strong female characters with convictions in the context of their representation. In “Black Madonnas: feminism, religion, and politics in Italy,” author Lucia Birnbaum implicates the idea of the Black Madonna as liberation theology. She states that Black Madonna represents a “political corollary of distributive justice, a people’s decalogue [in] which stealing from the poor is the worst sin, and a politics of resistance." In Catholicism, Mary is celebrated as the Mother of God, a strong-willed woman who showed kindness and resiliency throughout her life. Many folk stories about Black Madonna show her as a woman who represents universal salvation and equality where one’s sin is judged by whether it is for the good of the needs or for one’s own personal gain. The Black Madonna, Mary, and other female religious deities serve as a popular theme in which they embody the concept of equality, strength, and the kindness of a mother.

The Franciscan Missionary Brotherhood brings Poland’s Black Madonna from Europe to Saint Louis

The Black Madonna Shrine holds significant history in the context of culture in the Saint Louis Area. While the site holds many different artifacts and shrines on its property, perhaps the most drawing is the painting of the Black Madonna or Our Lady of Czestochowa. Before the Renaissance era, depictions of Mary, Jesus, and Jesus's disciples demonstrated more accurate colorations of skin tone. Having lived in a hot, arid climate, it is only logical that Mary and Jesus had olive skin and darker hair. However, this changed during the Renaissance when artists began illustrating these figures with alabaster skin, blue eyes, and light hair. It is very likely that most people in the Saint Louis region during the time this shrine was being built had known the Virgin mother and Jesus by these Eurocentric skin tones. In bringing the depiction of the Black Madonna from Poland, many current citizens of the Saint Louis area were likely first introduced to their primary religious figures in a more historically correct manner. This influx of culture from Poland drew in those who already lived here to witness this new shrine, bringing to attention these new (to them) ways of seeing Mary and Jesus, opening their minds to ideas they may not have encountered before.

A Pilgrimage to Eureka

The Shrine of the Black Madonna is located twenty minutes southwest of St. Louis in Eureka, Mo. Here is a slideshow of some of the shrines, statues, and grottos.

How the Franciscan Missionary Brothers impacted Saint Louis

When the Franciscan Missionary Brothers arrived in the mid 1800s, they began to make their mark here in Saint Louis. Their statement of purpose is:

to permeate our society with Gospel values. We are to be instruments of change and heralds of peace in a broken world, serving all people, especially the poor and marginalized, through reconciliation and healing.Our mission, in a variety of ministries, is to try to respond to the needs of the Church in fidelity to our Franciscan ideals.

They attained their goals by establishing churches that aided in the mental needs of the people, the poor, and the uneducated youth. In June of 1991, the “Franciscan Connection” helped many different people with financial struggles such as kids that were preparing for the school year. Also, they help struggling parents such as single mothers afford different bills. One-on-one group supports are an option as well. The support groups help people to become more self sufficient.

Conclusion

Culture, lifestyle, and faith are some of the basic stones that lay the foundation for a religion within our society. Religion influences and bends the culture that lives around it. The Black Madonna Shrine represents the lives of a faithful brotherhood who dedicate their lives for their belief. Saint Louis holds the diverse cultures of immigrants throughout the world. It is also where one can experience the history of The Black Madonna through the many artifacts and the influence that the Franciscan Missionary Brothers have the city itself.

Research and writing by Chante Bland, Jeff DeMond, and Anh Tran.

Additional sources:

Birnbaum, Lucia Chiavola. Black madonnas: feminism, religion, and politics in Italy. Boston: Northeastern U Press, 1993. Print.

Black Madonna Shrine. A Short History & a Self-Guided Tour of the Black Madonna Shrine and Grottos. Eureka MO: Black Madonna Shrine, n.d. Print.

Black Madonna Shrine. Visit the Black Madonna of Czestochowa Shrine & Grottos. Eureka Mo: Black Madonna Shrine, n.d. Print.

Franciscan Brother*. “Black Madonna Shrine Interview.” Telephone interview by Jeff DeMond. 15 Mar. 2017.

---Franciscan Connection---. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Apr. 2017.

Oleszkiewicz-Peralba, Małgorzata. Black Madonna in Latin America and Europe: Tradition and Transformation. U of New Mexico, 2007. Print.