Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
Bishop John M. D'Arcy of the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend broke ground Sunday for a new worship center in Warsaw to address the present and future needs of Hispanic Catholics in particular, and the Catholic Church as a whole. The new facility will be a phased development and is to be built using as much volunteer labor and community involvement as possible.
D'Arcy said, "This is a great day for us. We're addressing the needs of Hispanics and other immigrant groups. In the last 30 years, we have had groups coming from the countries to our south carrying with them their devotion to Our Lady, their reliance on the providence of God, their beautiful Spanish language and their spirit of song and joyfulness.
"We thank Jerry and Savina Kralis for giving us sufficient land to build this church. This shrine is for the whole diocese - Warsaw is halfway for us."
The Kralises attended the ceremony. Those participating in addition to the bishop were: the Rev. Paul R. Bueter, pastor of the current Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish, Milford; Sister Joan Hastreiter, SSJ, pastoral minister, who served as master of ceremonies and interpreter; the architect, Ruben N. Santos, Oakland, Calif.; and parishioners of the Milford and other churches.
D'Arcy said, "In the planning of our diocese for the great jubilee of 2000, we made the commitment that we would work with the parish of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Milford, to build a church. For 25 years, this parish has celebrated Mass in a building not worthy of the Holy Eucharist."
The diocese originally announced the new Hispanic church and shrine with social and educational facilities in September 1999. It was to be located on a seven-acre site on Ind. 15 near the present parish at Fourth and Main streets, Milford. In celebration of the Jubilee Year 2000, the diocese sponsored an international design competition open to all designers, architects, liturgists, theologians, artists, students and others. First prize was a contract for complete architectural services for design and construction of the new church.
More than 256 designs were received from throughout the world. The judging took place at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Warsaw, Dec. 4-5, 1999. On Dec, 12, the feast day that honors Our Lady of Guadalupe, Bueter told parishioners that the firm of Ruben N. Santos, Oakland, was the winner of the competition.
Since the announcement of the winning firm, the diocese received the donation by the Kralises of the 11-acre site in Warsaw. The project will consist of: a church for a congregation of 500 people, with occasional gatherings of nearly 1,000; accommodations for meetings, classes, cooking and dining; washroom facilities with access by campers; a small residence; parking; and a strategy for expansion.
The origin of the devotion to Our Lady Guadalupe is based on the appearance in 1531 of the Virgin Mary to an Indian, Juan Diego, at Tepayec near Mexico City. The woman in the vision identified herself as the mother of the true God and instructed Diego to ask the local bishop to build a temple on the site. The church at Mexico City is second only to the Vatican in terms of popularity.
D'Arcy said, "Pope John Paul II said there is only one America. He brought together all the nations of this hemisphere and placed them under the patronage of Our Lady of Guadalupe."
