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Altötting, which
Pope Benedict XVI described as the "Heart of Bavaria", is
located in the charming Upper Bavarian Alpine foothills between
Munich, Passau and Salzburg - and not far from Chiemsee, the
"Bavarian Sea".
Since over 1,250 years the city has been Bavaria's spiritual
centre, and over 500 years it has been Germany's most
significant Virgin Mary pilgrimage sites. The destination of the
over 1 million pilgrims and visitors annually is the "Black
Madonna" in the octagon of the Gnadenkapelle ("Chapel of Mercy")
shrine, which was presumably erected around the year 700 as a
Baptisterium. The small church building lies in the middle of
the Kapellplatz ("Chapel Square"), which is hemmed by baroque
buildings.
The incumbent head of the Catholic Church wrote the following
about Altötting: "I have the fortune of being born in the
vicinity of Altötting. The joint pilgrimages to the shrine with
my parents and siblings are amongst my earliest and most
beautiful memories". |
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