Basilica of Jesus de Medinaceli facts for kids
The Basilica of Jesus de Medinaceli (full Spanish name: Basílica de Nuestro Padre Jesús de Medinaceli) is a special Roman Catholic church in central Madrid, Spain. It's called a basilica, which means it's a very important church.
_01.jpg)
Contents
History of the Basilica
This beautiful church was officially opened in 1930. It was built to house a very important statue called Padre Jesús Nazareno (Father Jesus of Nazareth).
The Amazing Journey of the Statue
The statue was first made in the 1600s in Seville, a city in Spain. It was then sent to a Spanish fort in Morocco, a country in North Africa. While there, local people captured the statue.
Brave monks from the Trinitarian Order paid a special fee to get the statue back from the people who had captured it. After its rescue, the statue was brought to a convent in Spain. A convent is a place where monks or nuns live.
A Special Place for the Statue
The statue became very popular and many people felt a strong connection to it. Because of this, in 1689, the 8th Duke of Medinaceli decided to build a special chapel just for the statue.
Later, in 1710, a group of people called the Congregation of Slaves of Jesús Nazareno was formed. This group was dedicated to the statue.
Building the Church
In 1890, a different convent was being taken apart. At that time, Doña Casilda Salabert y Arteaga, who was the mother of the 17th Duke of Medinaceli, decided to build a new church for the statue.
From then on, the group dedicated to the statue became known as "Cristo de Medinaceli." In 1928, Pope Pius XI made this group an even more important organization.
Surviving Difficult Times
The statue almost didn't survive the Spanish Civil War, which happened in Spain from 1936 to 1939. But it did survive, despite many challenges. Because it survived such a difficult time, people's devotion to the statue grew even stronger.
See also
In Spanish: Basílica de Jesús de Medinaceli para niños
- Catholic Church in Spain
- List of oldest church buildings
