Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, LaCrosse, WI

Last week, our family was blessed to visit the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in LaCrosse, WI.  The shrine was founded by Cardinal Raymond L. Burke, himself a Wisconsin native.  Nestled gently in the hills of LaCrosse, my impression of the Shrine was, “everything is done very well.”  From the most intricate details of the murals in the Church within the shrine, to the garden surrounding the Memorial to the Unborn, a tremendous amount of prayer and thought were put into the shrine.

The main chapel of the shrine is located at the top of a hill of LaCrosse but the path up to the main chapel is delightful and prayerful.  The first stop is at the votive chapel.  The chapel has a tower of candles, 576 candles, which is the largest in the US.  Around the edge of the chapel are various stained glass windows of our lady; Our Lady of Fatima, Our Lady of Knock, Our Mother of good Counsel, Our Lady of Sorrows, Our Lady of Loretto, Our Lady of Lourdes and Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal.  Candles can be ordered to be lit online at the above link.  The limestone of the chapel is from Wisconsin and the stained glass were crafted in Minnesota.  The shrine is entirely Catholic and also Midwestern in very tangible ways.

  The path up to the main chapel, after the votive chapel, includes a beautiful statue of St. Joseph and also  points of meditation.  The main chapel itself is staffed by a group of awesome Franciscans who offer Confession and Mass.  The Mass was reverent and sound – a beautiful liturgy – and pilgrims dotted the pews and were truly fed – for that is why they came to the shrine.  After Mass, our family spent a wonderful lunch at the shrine cafeteria (which is a lot less like a cafeteria and more like a 4 star restaurant).  The cafeteria is located at the entrance to the shrine at the bottom of the hill.  I had a chicken salad sandwich, a New Glarus Spotted Cow (another bit of Midwestern beauty) and some Mystic Monk Coffee too!  Totally delightful, from parking lot, up the hill, and back down again.

The Main Chapel

The High Altar in the Main Chapel

One of the more moving and beautiful parts of the shrine is the Memorial of the Unborn.  Nestled in a beautiful garden, the deidcation to the holy innocents killed by abortion includes quotes from the past century that emphasize the Church’s constant, necessary, and firm dedication to protecting the unborn and decrying the mass killings of millions of innocents.  The garden of the unborn is a very somber and stunning memorial to our most precious citizens, killed before they were born.

Truly, the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe is a spot every Catholic pilgrim of the Midwest should visit.  Every single aspect of the shrine is done perfectly, every detail thought out in prayer.  We were so thankful to have visited the shrine and we would highly recommend it!

Our Lady of Guadalupe, Patroness of the Americas, Pray for us.