Breakfast. Transfer to MARIA BISTRICA. Marija Bistrica, a charming town in Croatia, is best known as a significant pilgrimage site, home to the revered Black Madonna statue housed in the Basilica of Our Lady of Bistrica (Hrvatsko nacionalno svetište Majke Božje Bistričke, Trg pape Ivana Pavla II. 32; 49246 Marija Bistrica). Nestled in the rolling hills of Zagorje, Marija Bistrica offers visitors a peaceful retreat with its spiritual atmosphere, beautiful landscapes, and rich cultural heritage. Overnight hotel near sanctuary. HOTEL KAJ, Zagrebačka ul. 42, 49246, Marija Bistrica, ChorwacjaDinner.
Marija Bistrica, the most known Croatian shrine of St. Mary, situated on the northern slopes of Medvednica some 40 km northeast of Croatia's capital Zagreb, has been the central place of worship of the Croatian people for centuries. What is Lourdes to the French, Fatima to the Portuguese, Loretto to the Italians, Czestochowa to the Poles, Mariazell to the Austrians that is the picturesque Marija Bistrica to the Croatian people.
The Shrine of St. Mary of Bistrica had and still has an important role in the Marian geography of the Croatian people. For centuries, pilgrims from all over Croatia and abroad as well as individuals coming in silence of personal pilgrimage have been coming to Marija Bistrica seeking and finding inner peace.
In this Croatian Marian shrine and parish fête site, the miraculous statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary with the infant Jesus is the greatest sacred object of the Croatian people. For centuries millions of pilgrims have been kneeling before it, praying, and the heavenly Mother helped them and answered their prayers.
The statue which had been hidden several times throughout its history from the impendent dangers was found for the last time in July 1684 and placed at the altar. Pilgrimages to this shrine began from this moment on. Many answered prayers dating from 1688 to the present day have been written down which show the great love and fidelity of the people for Mary, Mother of God.
The shrine in Marija Bistrica became the national shrine in 1715, when the Croatian parliament built a big votive altar, thus approving the devotion of the Croatian people to Saint Mary of Marija Bistrica.
As Marian devotions grew and many prayers got answered by seeking the intercession of Saint Mary of Bistrica, the shrine's church became tight and too small so Bistrica's parish priest Juraj (George) Žerjavić (1875 - 1911) had the church and the parish house with arcades extended and reconstructed following the designs of architect Friedrich von Schmidt and his student Hermann Bollé. The new church was built in Neo-Renaissance style.
On December 4, 1923, Pope Pius XI (1922-1939) granted the shrine of St. Mary of Bistrica status of a minor basilica.
On August 15, 1971, Marija marked its first large celebration when the XIII International Marian Congress was held there. That year the bishops proclaimed the shrine Croatian national shrine of Saint Mary of Bistrica.
However, the Croatian church marked its biggest historical, ecclesiastic, and national event when Pope John Paul II visited Marija Bistrica and beatified the Archbishop of Zagreb Cardinal Aloysius Stepinac in October 1998.
Holy Father John Paul II confirmed it by saying: ‘I have wanted to come to the well-known shrine of Mary of Bistrica for a long time. Providence wished for it to be on the occasion of the beatification of Cardinal Stepinac.’