Sanctuary of Our Lady of Sejny in Sejny
Medals for sale at the main entrance to the church!
The turbulent history of Sejny is marked, among other things, by the Swedish wars, as a result of which Sejny was burnt down (only the monastery complex and the wooden church of St George survived); the plague epidemic at the beginning of the 18th century, marches of Napoleonic armies in the years 1807-1812, the partitions, the flourishing of Sejny in the 19th century, finally the two world wars of the 20th century, as well as the unrest of the borderland in 1919-1920.
The project for the construction of a complex for the Dominican Order in Sejny envisaged the construction of a monastery church. In accordance with this project, construction work began in 1610 on the hill between the manor house and the town. The church was built in 10 years as a three-nave oriented building, that is, with the presbytery against the eastern wall. Inside it was supported by 6 pillars, with 8 windows, a separate chancel closed with an apse. The entrance to the church was on the side of the monastery.
The finishing work and furnishing of the church continued for many more years, but in the autumn of 1619, the statue of the Virgin Mary was moved in solemn procession from the wooden church of St George to the convent church. The first service was held and the statue was placed in the niche of the main altar above the ciborium. The church was consecrated by Bishop Jerzy Tyszkiewicz, suffragan of Vilnius, in 1632. In addition to the main altar, situated on the eastern side of the church, there were eleven Baroque altars, a wood-carved choir and a pulpit. This number of altars was justified by the needs of the convent, which numbered between 30 and 40 monks and seminarians. From the outside, the church was topped by a red-tiled roof with a single turret equipped with a cross and a bell.
For more than 400 years, the Virgin Mary has been protecting this land and people, bestowing numerous graces. Adjectives given to the statue: Our Lady of Sejny, Mother of Grace, of the Holy Trinity, Mother of the Auxiliary of the Faithful, Impetuous Advocate – emphatically testify to the great veneration bestowed on the statue at the Marian Shrine in Sejny. Numerous votive offerings, in spite of the fact that some of them have been stolen twice, testify to the validity of these adjectives – for centuries, the words ‘graciously famous’ have accompanied the Virgin of Sejny.
Of inestimable historical value, the grace-famous statue of the Virgin Mary of Sejny with the Child, which is the object of religious veneration in the Minor Basilica of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Sejny, has reigned and patronised this land since 1602.
The statue belongs to one of the three known types of cabinet figures of the Madonna. Its creation is attributed to an unknown sculptor, probably at the turn of the 14th and 15th centuries, during the time of the Teutonic Knights’ stay in Polish lands.
The statue, including the plinth, is 145 cm high (without the crown), is intricately carved in linden wood and depicts the Virgin Mary sitting on a throne, holding the infant Jesus at her right side. The carving is open at the sides from the neck of the Virgin to the base, forming a mantle of protection, supported by Mary’s hands. Inside, the bas-relief depicts God the Father seated on the throne of grace holding the cross with the deceased Jesus Christ. Above God the Father’s head is the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove. On the open sides of the Virgin Mary’s mantle are paintings of 26 figures of various states, 13 on the right and on the left.
