Home / News & Publications / Michigan Catholic News / 2009 / Archbishop blesses shrine to St. Barbara in Detroit's salt mine
Archbishop blesses shrine to St. Barbara in Detroit's salt mine
by Jared Field of The Michigan Catholic
Published Online October 23, 2009
Detroit – Clad in a black miner's jacket and sky blue hard hat, Archbishop Allen Vigneron descended 1,200 feet and 400 million years into the salt of the earth on Thursday night.
The archbishop made his visit to Detroit's salt mine to consecrate a newly crafted statue and shrine to St. Barbara, the patroness of miners. The statue is situated at the base of a hoist – the only portal in or out of the mine – at the Detroit Salt Company on the city's southwest side, Michigan's lone rock salt mine.
"We must be disposed and appreciate what this means," Archbishop Vigneron told a group of about 30 miners. "When the Church blesses a statue for people to use, to pray at, we do this because when we look at this statue we see somebody who followed Christ. And we, like that saint, will seek to please Christ.
"Those saints are our friends. They praise for us; they remember us and help us with their love.
The statue of St. Barbara was sculpted by master woodworker Jan Martinka from Rajec, Slovakia, and is carved from basswood.
Archbishop Vigneron told the miners that the shrine should serve as signal to all who see it.
"Every time you see this statue as you come to work, I hope it's a reminder to you that you can live in a way of holiness," he said. "A man, a woman, doesn't have to be in a convent or a monastery … in order to be holy. God wants all of us to be holy, and you can live a life of holiness as you work in a mine. You can do God's will; you can glorify him by the integrity of your work, the hard work you offer, and the justice by which you treat one another."
Several miners took the opportunity to light candles, pray and have their pictures taken in front of the shrine after the ceremony.
"It's the first time I've seen that, and it's really good," said Jozef Kustrzyk, who has been on his current job in the mine for only a few months. "In Poland, we have a big holiday for her.
"Every day I go to work, I know she's with me."
Knight Lor, 31, an American of Asian descent, said the shrine is a blessing regardless of religious affiliation.
"There's only one God," he said. "I have faith in this, and I know it will help me in the long run."
Pete Graham, director of mining at Detroit Salt Co., said that the ceremony will engender even more closeness to an already tight-knit group of miners.
"I've been doing this for probably 40 years and this is the first time I've have this kind of experience; this is special," Graham said. "I think this just brings us closer together as a family."
Graham said that the sight of St. Barbara will provide comfort in the doldrums.
"Sometimes you come down the shaft and you're not thinking about things; it gets kind of mundane and ordinary," he said. "I think this kind of brings us back to reality." Emanuel Manos, vice president of Detroit Salt Co., says having a shrine underground is not unusual.
"This is a common thing in the European mines, to wear our faith on our sleeves," he said. "As miners, it's hard enough to come under ground and to come up from a day's work. In all our lives we need God, and this will be a reminder that we can pass on some of our problems to this lady who is at the throne of God in heaven."
Janette Ferrantino, owner of Detroit Salt. Co., accompanied Archbishop Vigneron on a short tour of the mine, which encompasses more than 1,500 acres over 100 miles of roads. She was comforted by the turnout of her crew.
"I was very touched, it was a solemn and touching moment for me," she said. "I just feel really proud of the people who work here that their faith is so important to them."
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