Church of St. Ludmily in Prague is a basilica, the solemn mass was celebrated by the archbishop
Update: 16/09/2022 18:20
Issued by: 16/09/2022, 18:20
Prague – Prague Archbishop Jan Graubner celebrated mass today on the occasion of the announcement of the church of St. Ludmila on Náměstí Miru in Prague by the basilica. The honorary title of basilica minor was awarded to the church by Pope Francis in July. In his sermon, Graubner recalled the role of the saint as a patron of education and upbringing. According to him, education complements knowledge and one without the other leads to unfreedom. St. Ludmila is the fifth basilica in Prague.
The title of so-called basilica is granted by the Pope to smaller churches, in Prague it was previously held by the churches of St. James the Elder in the Old Town, Assumption of the Virgin Mary in Strahov, St. Margaret in Břevnov and St. Peter and Paul in Vyšehrad. There are hundreds of churches bearing the title of basilica minor, most of them in Italy. The higher title is basilica maior, it is reserved for the highest ranked Roman Catholic churches.
Today’s solemn mass was held on the occasion of the elevation of the church and the feast of St. Ludmila. According to Archbishop Graubner, the elevation of the Prague church to a basilica entails obligations, such as particularly careful celebration of selected holidays, but also privileges, such as the possibility of issuing so-called plenipotentiary indulgences. “We can say that we are extraordinarily connected with the Pope. In this church we are supposed to have a model liturgy, we are supposed to be an example for others,” said Graubner.
In his sermon, the Archbishop reminded that St. Ludmila is the patroness of church schools in memory of the fact that she raised Prince Wenceslaus, who was later canonized. According to him, upbringing and education go hand in hand, as do knowledge and action. “Knowing is not enough to act correctly, but the will and cultivated virtues are necessary to be able to strive for what we have learned. And that is precisely the task of education, and then self-education,” he said.
The foundation stone for the construction of the temple of St. Ludmily was laid on November 25, 1888. The ceremonial consecration of the church took place on October 8, 1893. The church is one of the landmarks of Vinohrady, it is built of cut bricks with a slate roof in the North German brick Gothic style. Its creator is the architect Josef Mocker (1835 to 1899), and the temple was created as a confirmation of the importance of the then independent town of Královská Vinohrady, which was established in the second half of the 19th century behind the Prague walls.
When viewed from the outside, the architecture of the church creates the impression of a Gothic cathedral with a crown of choir chapels. The facade of the building is dominated by a staircase popular for example at numerous weddings. Entrance tympanum representing the blessing Christ with St. Ludmila and St. Václavem is the work of Josef Václav Myslbek. The interior is decorated with ornamental-figurative paintings in the so-called Nazarene style.