Shrine of Our Lady of Madhu

Shrine of Our Lady of Madhu
Religion
Affiliation	Roman Catholic
Rite	Latin Rite
Status	Active
Location
Location	Mannar district, Sri Lanka
Architecture
Type	Church with shrine before it
Style	Baroque Revival

The Shrine of Our Lady of Madhu is a Roman Catholic Marian shrine in Mannar district of Sri Lanka. With a history of more than 400 years, the shrine acts as a center of pilgrimage and worship for Sri Lankan Catholics.^[1] The site is considered as the holiest Catholic shrine in the island^[2] and is a well known place of devotion for both Tamil and Sinhalese Catholics.^[3] The church has been a symbol of unity not just between Tamils and Sinhalese but also between people of different religions, including Buddhists, Hindus and Protestants.^[4]

Pope Benedict XV granted the image a pontifical decree of coronation on 7 April 1921 via the Prefect of the Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith, Cardinal Willem Marinus van Rossum. The rite of coronation was executed on 2 July 1924.

Attendance for the August festival at times almost reached one million people before the outbreak of the Sri Lankan Civil War.^[1] Situated in the heart of the conflict zone, pilgrimage to this shrine was dramatically affected by the civil war with the presence of refugee camps around the shrine complex.^[2] It was shelled a number of times.