Our Lady of the Enclosed Garden
The hermitage of Our - loving woman from the locked garden is the youngest of the Dutch hermitages.
It was opened in the former parish church of Warfhuizen in the province of Groningen in 2001. The Hermitage in Warfhuizen continues the tradition of hermitages in the provinces of Limburg and Brabant, which was built in the time of the Counter-Reformation. The last brother of this tradition died in 1930 at the hermitage on the Schaelsberg. In contrast to most hermitages abroad these hermitages had an associated chapel, which often held a role in the local faith.
After the Second Vatican Council the eremitic has sought to renew and, eventually in the years after new rules. In the ecclesiastical rules, the Code of Canon Law, is required of the hermits a broad seclusion. That is why in Warfhuizen a defined area, the exam, in which the monk works and prays. In the church, this is visible through an impressive choir screen, which separates the sanctuary from the nave.
Liturgy
As usual contemplative orders, in Warfhuizen Liturgy of the Hours is prayed, spoken in Latin. The influence of Limburg tradition can be seen at various additions, such Rosary and various litanies sung at different times of day. The veneration of St. Anthony the Great, from the evidence, a reliquary at the rear of the right side of the altar, it takes a special place. The facilities, especially the clearly visible division of the Church, reveals the persistence of the 17th century in Baroque style elements.
In addition to the hermit tradition of the South there are several other influences are felt in the liturgy. The fact that some of the believers are Russian Orthodox, has meant that the evening after Compline the Jesus prayer is sung in Greek. Furthermore, the influence of the Carthusians is particularly noticeable in the use of Gregorian chant.
Place of pilgrimage
Most visitors come to the worship of the Mother of God, this is due to the immigration of displaced Spaniards. The image of Our Lady of the closed garden is a life-size Mater Dolorosa by sculptor Miguel Bejarano Moreno from Seville, a sculptor, which refers to the production of portraits for the processions, during the famous Semana Santa specializes in Andalusia. This portrait of grieving for her son, Maria attracts many pilgrims to Warfhuizen. In particular, those people who worry about their children, of whom the Fürbittbuch testifies. Also come during the pilgrimage season, which lasts in Warfhuizen from about mid-April until the patronal festival on September 15, many groups of pilgrims. The development of these pilgrimage culture is probably due to the fact that there does not exist a similar popular piety in a wide radius.
The devotion to Our Lady of the locked garden is also dedicated to a fraternity that has the prayer for the welfare of the church and diocese to the task. Three times a year you pull with a cross from the parish church in Wehe den Hoorn to Threw Huizener hermit church, there to sing Compline.
Another special feature in Warfhuizen is the " exchange of the handkerchief ." The figure of the Mother of God holds in Warfhuizen a handkerchief in his hand, to dry her tears. The faithful ask this handkerchief to exchange it for a brought along or purchased locally. They give Mary handkerchief to a sick or a person who is facing a difficult task.