Basiliek van Onze-Lieve-Vrouw van Kortenbos

About

The Basilica of Our Lady of Kortenbos, officially Basilica of Maria Tenhemel, is a church building in Kortenbos in the municipality of Sint-Truiden, Belgium. The pilgrimage church is dedicated to Our Lady, a statue of which is especially honoured in Kortenbos. The Basilica of Kortenbos is at the same time a parish church for a parish, which includes parts of Alken (Rozenkranswijk), Kozen, Zepperen and Melveren. The norbertines of the Abbey of Averbode are the ministers of the parish of Kortenbos.

Building history: The origin of the church lies in a statue of Mary. In earlier times, the region between Hasselt and Sint-Truiden had to deal with highway robbers. In 1636 Elisabeth van Oeteren placed a statue of Our Lady in an oak in this lonely and uninhabited place. In 1639 the construction of a chapel, originally known as Our Lady at Nachtegaal near den Kortenbos, followed. In 1641 a baroque pilgrimage church was erected, built on the design of the Franciscan, Nicolaas Ray, due to the influx of Marian worshipers and a series of alleged miracles. The interior is also decorated in baroque style. The church became...