Thiruvananthapuram: The renovated Vettucaud Madre de Deus church, a major Christian pilgrim centre in south Kerala, will be consecrated on Wednesday.

Archbishop of Latin archdiocese Soosa Pakiam will dedicate the church to the public at a function organized at 4.30 pm. Major Archbishop of Syro-Malankara Catholic Church Baselios Cleemis will deliver the gospel speech at the function.

A procession, which will be attended by 13 bishops and around 100 priests will be held at 5.15 pm. When the procession reaches the flag pole, Bishop Christudas will bless the flag pole and parish priest Monsignor Nicolas will hoist the flag marking the beginning of the Mother Mary’s festival. Representatives of believers, workers and carpenters will hand over the key of the new church to the bishop, who will direct the church priest to open the door.

The renovated church building will be sanctified in a three hour ceremony where the idols and pictures of Jesus Christ, saints and Mother Mary will be blessed by the sacred holy water.

According to church representatives, the renovated church is an architectural marvel. The newly constructed three-dimensional church dome is designed based on Michelangelo’s painting “The Last Judgment’ and is modelled on the dome of Sistine Chapel in the Vatican. The entire structure is made of fibreglass. The dome is placed 60 feet above the base of the church. The artwork was done by a team led by Alex Chandy and took around 18 months to complete. The interior of the church was done in Roman, Gothic, Byzantine and Indian style.

The main entrance of the church depicts Christ’s Jerusalem entry. The floor is made of Italian marble and furnishing is done using teak wood. Glass paintings illustrating Jesus Christ’s miracles and Mother Mary’s idols will decorate the interior of the church. Fans exported from the US and Belgium bells are other highlights of the new church. M A Sebastain from Kochi is the architect.

(Source: The Times of India)