Onze-Lieve-Vrouw
Onze-Lieve-Vrouweplein
3020 Herent
Church | XII | Romanesque | Roman Catholic Church
Map
Opening hours
01 January - 31 December
Mon 9.00 - 17.00
Tue 9.00 - 17.00
Wed 9.00 - 17.00
Thu 9.00 - 17.00
Fri 9.00 - 17.00
Sat 9.00 - 17.00
Sun 9.00 - 17.00
Religious offices
Description
This church is a remarkable building that was constructed during different building periods. The oldest part (dates back to the second half of the twelfth century) is a square sandstone tower with four floors in Romanesque style. The walls of the tower are decorated in a remarkable fashion with, among other things, interlaced arches. The oldest clock in this tower dates back to 1669.
The nave and the choir are Gothic and some elements date back to the thirteenth century. In the choir, there is a beautiful round window oriented to the east. All the stained glass windows depict events that revolve around the life of Mary. During the 80 year war between Spain and the Netherlands the Geuzen burned the church down (around 1580) and substantial repairs were needed afterwards. The statue of Our Lady with Child (sixteenth or seventeenth century) used to attract thousands of pilgrims to Herent. She was called upon for blindness and eye diseases. A half moon crescent rests at Mary’s feet, which is quite exceptional. It can be used as a dating element: in 1571 the Pope encouraged the European Christians to pray the Rosary to help the armies that were battling the Turks in Central Europe. That same year the Christians won. Since then Mary became the ‘conqueror of the Turkish danger’.
Notice the images of the four Evangelists on the exterior shell of the oak pulpit (eighteenth century). The organ that was made by Robustelly, an organ builder from Liège, is over 200 years old. It was thoroughly restored in 1997.
The Neo-Gothic main altar dates back to 1908 and is made of gilded bronze. It was donated to the church by its parishioners. You can see the sacrifice of Isaac by Abraham on the left altarpiece. The tabernacle doors are decorated with enamel. On the left are the symbols of the Eucharist (Host and chalice) and on the right there is an image of a pelican that feeds his young with his own blood (the sacrifice of the Cross and the Eucharist).
Sources :
Inventory for Architectural heritage. M. Piot (2003) Geschiedenis van Herent, van prehistorie tot 21ste eeuw, Genootschap voor Heemkunde Herent
KIKIRPA : Photo-library online
Photos
Remarkable elements
Statue of Our Lady with Child
Also called Our Lady Light of the Blind. Thousands of people used to come and seek healing for blindness and eye diseases. This polychrome wooden statue represents Mary with baby Jesus on her right arm. Mary’s feet rest on a half moon crescent. This can be an indication of a date: in 1517 the Christians defeated the Turks at the sea battle of Lepanto. Ever since then Mary was considered “the conqueror of the Turkish danger”.
Rose window
This rose window was restored after the Second World War. All representations on the rose window revolve around the life of Mary:- The central circle shows Our Lady in Heaven, patroness of our church.
- The six little circles around the central one depict her being crowned, blessed and incensed by angels.
- The six large surrounding circles represent important events in her life, including the message of the angel and the birth of Jesus.
- In six smaller figures we can see the symbolic representations of the Holy Trinity and the four evangelists.
Van Bladel altar
The Neo-Gothic side altar in gilded bronze (1908) is named after pastor Hyppoliet Van Bladel to whom the altar was gifted. The left altar piece represents the sacrifice of Isaac by Abraham and the right piece depicts the priest Melchisedech with the symbols for bread and wine. On the doors of the tabernacle we can see the symbols of the Eucharist (bread and wine in the form of a host and chalice) and a pelican feeding her young with her own blood, which is a symbol of Christ feeding the believers with his blood (the Sacrifice of the Cross) and with his flesh and blood (the Eucharist).
