Greek Catholic church in Máriapócs, Minor basilica in Máriapócs, Hungary
The Greek Catholic church in Máriapócs is a baroque structure featuring ornate frescoes, intricately carved altars, and soaring vaulted ceilings throughout its interior. The decoration includes religious imagery and architectural elements that create a sense of vertical space and embellishment.
In 1676 the village judge László Csigri commissioned a Hodegetria icon of the Virgin and Child from István Papp for six Hungarian forints; when Csigri could not pay, Lőrinc Hurta bought it and gave it to the local Greek Catholic community. On 4 November 1696, during the liturgy in the wooden church, the icon was seen to weep; the weeping continued until 8 December. The original was taken to Vienna, and a copy returned to Pócs. Construction of the present church began in 1731 under Gennadius György Bizánczy and was completed in 1756; the two onion-domed towers followed in 1856.
The church follows the Byzantine rite as a Greek Catholic community under the Hajdúdorog eparchy. The iconostasis, made in 1785–88 with its panels replaced in 1896, separates the sanctuary from the nave. The main pilgrim feasts are 20 July (St Elijah), 15 August (Dormition) and 8 September (Nativity of the Theotokos).
The church stands in the center of Máriapócs, and the main pilgrimages fall on 20 July (St Elijah), 15 August (Assumption) and 8 September (Nativity of Mary), when large crowds gather. The miraculous image is now in the north aisle, reachable from the church courtyard through two doors cut into the wall. A thermal lake with 52 °C water lies nearby and is incorporated into pilgrimages.
The copy of the weeping icon kept here was made in 1696 near Kassa (Košice) while the original travelled to Vienna, where it remains; the Máriapócs copy itself wept in 1715 and again in 1905. The church's oldest bell, St Nicholas, was cast by Antal Sahlinger in Eger in 1835 and weighs 1100 kg.
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