The baroque basilica of Leżajsk houses the miraculous painting of Holy Mary, the destination for many pilgrims from afar and the nieghbourhood.
The most precious element of the baroque basilica, however, is the organ - the second largest in Poland after Oliwa in Gdańsk - both instruments are loacted on the extreme ends of Poland: Gdańsk in the north, on the Baltic Sea; Leżajsk in the South East.
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The side part of the organ |
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The central part |
The instrument took over ten years to be completed between 1680 and 1693. Every summer there is a Festival of Organ Music held with concerts on Mondays at 7:00 p.m. This is the only instrument in the world where three organists are able to play simultaneously.
The first church of wood stood there in late 16th century. In 1608, the Bernardine monks arrived there and started to construct a solid church. The present shape basilica was completed in 1618-1628.
In June 2013, our family arranged our regular Family Reunion close to Leżajsk where a traditional holy mass was reserved with the intention to pray for the prosperity and well-being of all members of the Bogusławski clan and perpetual rest for those who had passed away. As usual, we were going to do the reading of Scripture so it called for some arrangements with the celebrating monk in the sacristy:
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Friar Izydor checking the Bible readings |
Ave Maria was sung by this young lady in the picture above, a student of the Conservatoire
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5fPcP09wh4g