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Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
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Parish
History
Information Taken from
www.ourladyofsiluva.com
In the
year 1929, Lithuanian immigrants
settled in Chicago, Illinois. Their
devotion to Our Lady of Siluva was
of importance that a parish in her
honor was established in the
Marquette Park neighborhood of
Chicago. Today, the church, Nativity
of the Blessed Virgin Mary, has a
replicated copy of the extraordinary
image of Our Lady of Šiluva over its
main altar.

Congregation members had a desire to
build a new church which would serve
as a monument, dedicated for their
love to the Mother of God. In
consequence, the pastor, Rev. George
A. Paškus, made extensive plans to
have the monument erected.
Work
for the new church began in 1953 and
was completed in 1957. The building
is of Lithuanian folk baroque style
and Lithuanian folk art. The gold
encrusted replica of Our Lady of
Šiluva hangs over the main altar. In
addition, there is a mural near one
of the side altars, which is an
artistically depicted apparition of
the Blessed Virgin in Šiluva,
painted by Sister Mercedes of the
Sisters of St. Casmir. Over the
years, the church has attracted
visitors from all parts of the
country.
During
the Octave of the Feast of Nativity
held each September, crowds
congregate to the church to pay
respect to Our Lady of Šiluva.
Priests from Lithuania are invited
to this annual celebration to
conduct the novena services held on
the Sunday between September 7th and
16th which consists of an outdoor
procession with pageantry. All
Lithuanian parishes throughout the
Chicagoland area are invited to
participate. This celebration
honoring Our Lady of Šiluva
officially began in 1952 with the
permission of Samuel Cardinal
Stritch, and under the direction of
Mr. Anthony Rudis.
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