The topic of the immaculate conception occupies an important place in Christian doctrine. She emphasizes the uniqueness of the birth of Jesus Christ, the divinity of his nature.
The doctrine of the Immaculate Conception is so significant for Christians that in some cities it was immortalized in monuments. True, these monuments are not dedicated to the very conception of Jesus Christ.
Column of the Immaculate Conception
One of the sights that can be seen in Rome, the capital of Italy, is the Column of the Immaculate Conception. True, this is not about the conception of Jesus Christ. The fact is that in Italy Catholicism is preached, and in the Catholic Church, unlike the Orthodox, it is believed that not only the Savior himself was immaculately conceived, but also His mother, the Virgin Mary. This monument is dedicated to her conception.
The column is located in Piazza di Spagna (Plaza de España), next to the office of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Nations.
The initiator of the creation of this remarkable monument was the King of the Two Sicilies Ferdinand II. This was preceded by important historical events. In 1854, Pope Pius IX proclaimed the dogma of the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary, which was previously absent in the Catholic doctrine. In addition, the dispute between the Papal States and Naples, which refused the annual tribute to the Pope, was resolved. These events marked the creation of the Column of the Immaculate Conception.
The project of the monument was developed by the architect L. Poletti, and in December 1857 the marble Column was erected. Its length is 11.8 m, at the top there is a bronze statue of the Virgin Mary trampling on a serpent with her feet, which symbolizes original sin. Near the base of the column are the statues of four biblical heroes - King David, the prophets Moses, Jezekiel and Isaiah.
Every year on December 8 (the anniversary of the opening of the monument), the Pope comes to the square and brings a wreath of white lilies, symbolizing purity. By means of a crane, the wreath is placed on the right hand of the statue of the Holy Virgin, where it remains until the next ceremony.
Temples of the Immaculate Conception
In a broad sense, Christian churches and monasteries dedicated to this event can be called monuments to the Immaculate Conception. One of these churches is the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Moscow, which is on Malaya Gruzinskaya Street. This is a neo-gothic Catholic church. It was built according to the project of the architect F. Bogdanovich-Dvorzhetsky, consecration took place in 1911. The fate of the temple is notable for its dramatic nature: in 1938, church property was plundered, and the cathedral itself was turned into a hostel. During the Great Patriotic War, the building was damaged by bombing. In the early 90s, Poles living in Moscow secured the return of the cathedral to the Catholic Church, and divine services were resumed.
Although the Orthodox Church does not consider the conception of the Virgin Mary to be immaculate, there is an Orthodox monastery dedicated to this event. This oldest nunnery in the capital is located in the capital's Khamovniki district. It was founded by Metropolitan Alexy in 1360. Subsequently, the monastery was destroyed by fire and re-established in 1584. The childless Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich hoped in this way to deserve the deliverance of his wife from infertility. During the Soviet era, the monastery was closed, and most of the buildings were demolished. Only the gate church survived. In 1995, the status of the monastery was restored, the construction of new churches began on the site of the destroyed ones.
The Church of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary also exists in the capital of the Canary Islands, the city of Santa Cruz de Tenerife. Even the Spanish conquistadors, who landed on the islands, built a chapel on this place, around which the city arose. In the 16th century. a church was erected, which had to be rebuilt after a fire in the 17th century.
The Catholic Church of the Immaculate Conception is one of the attractions of Chelyabinsk. The architecture of the building combines the features of Art Nouveau and Gothic. A feature of the temple is the location of the altar: usually the altar is located at the eastern wall, but here it is shifted to the center. In the temple, adherents of not only the Roman Catholic, but also the Greek Catholic Church hold services.
Orthodox Conception churches exist in the Vysotsky Monastery (Serpukhov), the village of Gora (Shatursky District, Moscow Region). There is a holy spring near the Conception Church in the town of Chekhov near Moscow. Orthodox Christians believe in the miraculous power of this source. It is believed to heal infertility in women.
