AURIESVILLE — On January 27, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops announced that Our Lady of Martyrs Shrine in Auriesville has been designated as a national shrine for pilgrims by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.
The Shrine was informed of its new official status by Father Dustin P. Doughty, executive director of Secretariat of Divine Worship for the U.S. Bishops, in a letter to Bishop Edward Scharbenberger of Albany, who, in a personal capacity, is chairman of the board of Friends of Our Lady of Martyrs, which runs the Shrine.
In August 2024, the Board of the Friends of Our Lady of Martyrs formally requested that the sanctuary be designated as a National Shrine.
Traditionally known as the National Shrine of the North American Martyrs, the National Shrine of Our Lady of Martyrs is located a short distance from the Empire State’s capital region and about three hours by car from Manhattan, Boston, and Buffalo. It encompasses the former Ossernenon village where Jesuit priests Saints Isaac Jogues, René Goupil, and Jean de Lalande were martyred in the 1640s. It is also where convert St. Kateri Tekakwitha, known as “The Lily of the Mohawks,” was born in 1656.
Opened in 1885, the Shrine has been administered for most of its history by a succession of Jesuit provinces in the northeastern United States and was formally owned by a non-profit corporation named Shrine of Our Lady of Martyrs, Inc.
In 2017, that foundation transferred the ownership of the Shrine to Friends of Our Lady of Martyrs, a non-profit corporation composed mainly of lay people, diocesan clergy, and other supporters of the Shrine, and chaired in a personal capacity by Bishop Scharfenberger.
“We are delighted that the bishops have confirmed what the faithful have long instinctually known: The National Shrine of Our Lady of Martyrs is our home for the cultivation of holiness here in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico,” Bishop Scharfenberger said.
“The inspiration of the martyrs in my upstate New York backyard was foundational to my own early calling to the priesthood,” he continued. “To this day, I go to the Shrine as a pilgrim to refuel in prayer for God’s outpouring of graces in my daily decisions and the lives of the faithful people the Church has entrusted to me.”
In 1930, a year before Pope Pius XI canonized the eight North American Martyrs — the three who died in Auriesville and the five who died in Ontario, Canada — a church dubbed the “Coliseum” was built on the grounds of The Shrine.
Constructed according to the tradition of a Roman amphitheater where early Christian martyrs had yet been killed, the round, roofed Coliseum has 70 doors, symbolizing the 70 disciples whom Jesus sent out to proclaim the Gospel in every direction (see Lk 10:1). Built to seat over 8,000 people, it has the largest capacity of any Church building in the western hemisphere.
It was recently filled in October 2023 for the New York State Eucharistic Congress, which featured popular Catholic speakers Peter Kreeft, Supreme Knight of the Knights of Columbus Patrick Kelley, Bishop Joseph Espaillat of New York and Catholic Channel Sirius host Katie McGrady, among others.
Julie Baaki, Executive Director of Our Lady of Martyrs Shrine, described the ongoing relevance of the Shrine.
“Pope Francis has said that there are more Christian martyrs in the world today than in the early Church,” Baaki said. “Our National Shrine is a haven where pilgrims come to pray for our persecuted brothers and sisters throughout the world as well as for growth in courage for any trials we face as we try to live lives of virtue, grow in faith and try to pass it along.”
“As a wife and mother,” continued Baaki, “I see the fruits of my prayers to the Martyrs in everyday family life, and a superabundance of graces in the testimonies of faithful who visit. Even before this new designation, our Shrine has drawn multitudes from across the country to upstate New York to learn from the faith of the martyrs and Saint Kateri.”
Monsignor Roger Landry, National Director of the Pontifical Mission Societies in the U.S.A. and a Board Member of Friends of Our Lady of Martyrs, said that the Shrine is a place where all Catholics are confirmed in the missionary dimension of the Christian life.
“As Pope Francis repeatedly teaches us, we Catholics do not just have a mission but are a mission. We have been entrusted by Jesus Christ with the completion of his saving mission on earth,” he said.
“It’s therefore impossible not to be impressed by the witness of the great missionary saints Isaac, Rene and Jean, who left their native France to bring the saving Gospel of Jesus and his real presence in the Eucharist to the native peoples of eastern Canada and New York. What they suffered out of love for Christ and for others inspires me and team at the Pontifical Mission Societies to try to support all those who are making similar sacrifices to share Christ and his word across the globe today,” he said.
Landry, who has also served as a chaplain at the Shrine during its summer season, said that the new National Shrine, “because of its association with four great saints and heroes of our faith, probably is, after the tabernacles that adorn our Churches and the souls of newly baptized babies, the holiest place for Catholics in the country.” He urged everyone to visit the Shrine to “experience its enormous spiritual riches” for themselves.
The National Shrine of Our Lady of Martyrs will begin its 2025 season on May 3 and will remain open through the feast day of the North American martyrs on October 19. 2025 is the centenary of the North American Martyrs’ beatification. There is a novena to St. Kateri every July 6-14 leading up to her feast and another to the martyrs every October 11-19.