Assumption Grotto Church

I am staying at Assumption Grotto parish near Gratiot and 6 Mile, Detroit. I had forgotten how beautiful the church is. More photos will come, but here are a few from my phone. After Mass in the dark church with just the altar illuminated. They use only this main altar now, thanks be to God.

A closer look at the candles.

There are many relics displayed on the reredos.

This relic has an interesting story.

This is a relic of St. Augustine Schoeffler, one of the Vietnamese Martyrs.

A description of his martyrdom:

 

As Father Schoeffler walked to his place of execution, a placard, which read, "He preached truly the whole charge of preaching the religion of Jesus. His crime is patent. Let Mr. Augustin be beheaded, and cast into a stream." was carried before him. Augustin Schoeffler’s head was thrown into the Red River, and was never recovered. The crowd rushed to collect relics. Some even uprooted the grass that was stained with his blood. His body was buried on the site of his execution. Two days later, local Christians exhumed the body and reburied it in a Christian village nearby.

 

The martyrdom of St. Augustine

St. Augustine Schoeffler was the nephew of the people who owned the land which was donated for the building of this parish, Assumption Grotto, one of the oldest parishes in Detroit.  What a connection for this parish to have this wonderful relic.

Someone who teaches us more about the meaning of vera pax, verus amor, vera iustitia.

About Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Fr. Z is the guy who runs this blog. o{]:¬)
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11 Comments

  1. MareD says:

    Welcome Pater! :)

    I was wondering where you’d be staying during your visit. I must say, you’ve chosen one of the most beautiful Churches in the Detroit area! The Clergy and parishioners at Grotto are amongst the best! :)

    Bonum est quia venisti!!!

  2. Luke says:

    Thanks, Father.

  3. Margaret says:

    Thank you for sharing this, Father. His example of true heroism and nobility is a refreshing tonic after the Nobel Peace Prize story.

  4. Luke says:

    We get it: The altar and not the sty. I’ll do my best.

  5. irishgirl says:

    What a wonderful story, Father.

    I agree with Margaret-this is refreshing change from hearing what happened in Norway.

    Looking forward to seeing more pictures….

  6. Tominellay says:

    I assisted at High Mass at Assumption Grotto in April, 2008, on a visit to Detroit. It is truly a beautiful church, where the liturgy is done beautifully. I congratulate the pastor and his flock.

  7. Konichiwa says:

    It’s great to hear something about a Holy Vietnamese Martyr, and what an amazing looking church!

  8. jt83 says:

    Our Lady of Lavang,St. Augustine Schoeffler, St. Andrew Dung Lac, St. Agnes Le Thi Thanh, St. Dominic Cam, and all the Holy Martyrs of Vietnam, PRAY FOR US. May God bless the faithful suffering under totalitarian rule in Vietnam.

  9. We got the relic just in time for the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker. A solemn high Mass was celebrated and then we venerated the relic.

    I covered the day photos here. It was truly special.

    That link will take you to my smugmug page.

  10. Mitchell NY says:

    What a beautiful Altar…The candlesticks truly inspire thought in regards to the treasures and arts of the Church. I for one would be so proud to call this parish home..

  11. Sandra_in_Severn says:

    That is my father’s family’s church!!! My Great-grandparents and my grandparents were parishioners; my grandparents married in that church, and it was were their funerals were held. It was the parish that both my father and my uncle were altar servers and attended school.

    So much of my late father’s family’s history was centered there.

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