Our Lady of Aparecida - The New Basilica

The New Basilica

In the mid-20th century, as the popularity of Our Lady of Aparecida grew, the construction of a much larger building to shelter the image became necessary. In 1955, work on the present Basilica of the National Shrine of Our Lady of Aparecida was begun. Architect Benedito Calixto designed a building in the form of a Greek cross, 173 meters long and 168 meters wide; the tower is 100 meter high, the naves have 40 meters and the dome is 70 meters high, covering a surface area of around 18,000 square meters. It can hold up to 45,000 people. The 272,000 square meters of parking hold 4,000 buses and 6,000 cars.

It is currently the largest Marian temple and the second largest Basilica in the world, second only to St. Peter's in the Vatican City.

On July 4, 1980, while still under construction, the new church was consecrated by Pope John Paul II and given the title of Minor Basilica.

Since then, the two Basilicas in the city of Aparecida have been known as the "Old Basilica" and the "New Basilica". Upon its completion, the Brazilian Conference of Catholic Bishops declared the new Basilica a National Shrine.

As the National Shrine, dedicated to the patroness of Brazil, one of the functions of the Basilica is to function as a site of pilgrimage for laborers. The traditional pilgrimage of the laborers takes place each year on Brazil's independence holiday, September 7. According to recent estimates, the Basilica attracts about 8 million pilgrims a year.

The influence of the cult of Our Lady Aparecida on Brazilian Catholic society is incalculable. In 1992 a study showed that 296 parishes were dedicated to her while five cathedrals had the same title. In addition, many towns are named after the Virgin and so are many Brazilian women and girls. The modern art styled cathedral of Brasilia designed by Oscar Niemeyer is dedicated to Our Lady Aparecida, as Brasilia is the national capital and she is invoked as Brazil's special protector.

In 2004, to commemorate the centennial of the pontifical coronation commanded by Pope Pius X, and the 150th anniversary of the dogmatic definition of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the statue of Our Lady of Aparecida was crowned afresh. The renewed coronation was presided by the then Archbishop emeritus of Rio de Janeiro, Cardinal Eugênio Sales, in the capacity of special papal envoy of Pope John Paul II.

In 2007, Pope Benedict XVI granted the Basilica of the National Shrine of Our Lady Aparecida a Golden Rose. The "Old Basilica" also possesses a Golden Rose, awarded by Pope Paul VI in 1967. The Golden Rose of Paul VI was delivered to the "Old Basilica" by the Apostolic Nuncio, and its bestowal was a gift of the Holy See to mark the participation of the Supreme Pontiff in the commemorations of the 250th anniversary of the devotion to the Virgin of Aparecida. The "New Basilica"'s Golden Rose, awarded by Benedict XVI, was personally delivered to the shrine by the Supreme Pontiff, who visited the Basilica and celebrated Mass there during his 2007 Apostolic visit to Brazil.