Historic Catholic Church Officially Becomes a Basilica Wednesday

A distinctive landmark in Royal Oak since 1926, the Little Flower Church was named a National Shrine in 1988. On Wednesday, April 22, the decree naming it a Minor Basilica will be read at a celebratory Mass. (Photo via Creative Commons)

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The National Shrine of the Little Flower Church in Royal Oak will officially become a Catholic basilica Wednesday, and with the new status comes a challenge to more actively spread the gospel, church leaders said.

The church at Woodward and 12 Mile – a local landmark distinguished by its soaring crucifix-adorned sandstone tower – was named a minor basilica by the Vatican several months ago.

The 82-year-old church, which after Wednesday will be known as the National Shrine of the Little Flower Basilica, is the 82nd in the United States and second in Michigan to be named a basilica. Michigan’s other basilica is located in Grand Rapids.

The official announcement takes place at a Mass of Thanksgiving, led by Detroit Archbishop Allen Vigneron, at 7 p.m. Wednesday, the Detroit Free Press reports.

The parish choir and choral groups from two schools will perform, and Deacon Thomas Avery will read the Vatican decree designating the church a basilica.

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The designation capped a years-long effort by the Rev. Robert Fisher, the parish priest, and the former pastor, the late Monsignor William Easton, to honor the church with a Vatican designation. Archbishop Vigneron made an appeal last year to the Vatican’s Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments.

The parish was founded in 1926 and was named after St.Thérèse of Lisieux, a French nun known as the “Little Flower,” who was canonized a saint in 1925. Born Therese Martin on Jan. 2, 1873, she entered the convent at 15 and died nine years later of tuberculosis. She wrote about her life, love of Jesus and religious philosophy during her illness, calling herself as insignificant as a small flower in a garden nurtured by God.

The church has a storied history, and in 1988 was among the first five churches in the country to share the designation of National Shrine by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Busy Parish, Architectural Significance

The Shrine is one of the busiest parishes in the metro, serving more than 3,500 families. Besides its architectural stature, the Shrine had to demonstrate its heightened liturgical activity and its architectural stature to qualify as a basilica.

The public won’t notice many differences, beyond the banners in the papal colors of yellow and white that will fly from the landmark tower to herald the parish’s special relationship with Pope Francis.

Fisher, the parish pastor, told the Free Press that parishioners have felt “very honored” by the designation.

“At the same time, we’ve been using it as a challenge,” he said. “Not as a trophy we put on our shelf, but as a challenge to spread the gospel all the more intensely.”

The day-to-day happenings and Mass schedule will remain much as they were at the Shrine Basilica, but celebrations of Catholic feast days associated with the papacy of St. Francis will be added.

The Detroit Free Press has more about what Shrine Basilica’s new designation means, and has more about the history of the landmark church.