Way of the Cross turns 100

Hundreds turn out for shrine's centennial

By KURT NESBITT

Journal Staff Writer

NEW ULM -- Normally, pilgrimages to the Way of the Cross aren't this large, but the procession Saturday morning was an exception.

The Catholic shrine dedicated to Jesus Christ's trial, crucifixion and death celebrated its 100th anniversary this weekend.

The shrine, which includes 14 stations, a grotto and the Lady of Sorrows chapel, was built by one of the area's first Catholic priests and the Order of the Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ, who also built, owned and managed a Catholic hospital and a home for the elderly at the base of the hill where New Ulm Medical Center is today.

Parishioners marked the shrine's centennial with a mass of celebration at the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity. During that service, New Ulm Mayor Joel Albrecht read a proclamation making Saturday Way of the Cross Day and thanked the Catholic Church for 150 years in New Ulm. Bishop John Nienstedt later returned the favor by thanking the city during some of his remarks.

An estimated 450 people attended the event in various stages. About 376 were in attendance at the mass. About 50 more people were waiting for the congregation's procession to arrive at the shrine and another 24 joined the group for lunch at Holy Trinity Middle School after the ceremonies.

The shrine sits in the middle of Loretto Hill, between the New Ulm Medical Center and the Diocese of New Ulm. It is hidden by trees and the medical center's campus, just off 5th North Street.

Work to refurbish the shrine first began in 1991, although most of it was completed between 1995 and 2004. The Knights of Columbus, who became the keepers of the Way of the Cross after the Order of the Poor Handmaids left New Ulm, raised about $65,000 to pay for the work.

"We hope it lasts for another 200 years," said George Glotzbach, a member of the centennial's publicity committee. "I've carefully kept all my records at the Diocese, so 100 years from today, when I have to do it again, I will not rethink it."

Following the mass, a procession led by Nienstedt left the cathedral through the front door and headed down 6th North Street to Garden Street and then proceeded from Garden Street to 5th North Street, going up the hill. Nienstedt walked underneath a canopy held by four men and carried holy sacrament inside a monstrance. The procession took about 35 minutes. Once at the site, parishioners sang hymns and prayed, and Nienstedt gave a short benediction. Parishioners walked or rode a bus back to the cathedral once the ceremony was over.

Four nuns representing the Order of the Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ drove from their home in Donaldson, Ind., to attend the celebration.

One of those visiting nuns, Sr. Nola Weiver, was the former administrator of Loretto Hospital and the Way of the Cross. A native of Cincinnati, Weiver, a registered nurse who is now 92 years old, was sent to New Ulm to act as the hospital's administrator. She said she was initially "scared to death because it was such a big responsibility".

Weiver left New Ulm in 1963 shortly after the new Loretto Hospital building was finished. She had not returned to New Ulm until Saturday, when she toured the city and the Way of the Cross.

"I remember I used to plant flowers along the pathway," she said. "I also remember placing the very first ledger there. I saw so many people coming, so I said, 'How many people are there?' No one knew. So we built a pedestal and we put it out there. There were thousands of people who had come not just from this country but also from Europe."

Nuns of the order assisted Fr. Alexander Berghold 100 years ago by excavating and preparing much of the construction site. They pushed wheelbarrows transporting the cobblestones used in the construction of the stations, pathway and rock walls. Everything at the Way of the Cross was created by the order except for the statues in the shrine's 14 stations and the shrine at the entrance, which were imported from Bavaria.

The order later owned and managed Loretto Hospital and St. Alexander Home for the Aged. Loretto Hospital merged with Union Hospital in the 1980s to become the present-day New Ulm Medical Center. The St. Alexander Home for the Aged was razed. The Way of the Cross is now owned by the Diocese of New Ulm.