Sorrowful Mother Shrine in Bellevue, Ohio

The Sorrowful Mother Shrine is located at:

4106 State Route 269
Bellevue, Ohio 44811
Telephone 419-483-3435 ext. 106 for more information.

Pilgrimages
To arrange a pilgrimage or a group day of recollection, call 419-483-3435.

Directions to the Sorrowful Mother ShrineThe Shrine is located southwest of Cleveland and southeast of Toledo, Ohio.

From I-90 W (Cleveland)

• I-90 W toward Toledo (Portions toll).
• Take the OH-4 exit, Exit 110.
• Turn right onto Hayes Ave/OH-4. Continue to follow OH-4.
• Turn right onto OH-547.
• Turn left onto OH-269.
• 4106 State Route 269.

From I-90 E (Toledo)

• I-80 E/I-90 E toward Cleveland (Portions toll).
• Take the OH-4 exit, Exit 110.
• Turn right onto Hayes Ave/OH-4. Continue to follow OH-4.
• Turn right onto OH-547.
• Turn left onto OH-269.
• 4106 State Route 269.

GPS Directions: Choose 4106 OH 269 for the street address.
Six (6) miles south of Bellevue on OH-269(N41° 10.990’  W82° 50.556’ Elev: 904 ft.).

The Sorrowful Mother Shrine is located in Northwestern Ohio at the southern edge of the popular Lake Erie Vacationland. Major highways and the Ohio Turnpikes, (1-80 & I-90), make traveling to the Shrine fast and easy. 

The Missionaries of the Precious Blood have operated the Shrine since its founding in 1850. On Sundays and Holy Days priests and religious lead devotional services and processions; they visit with people sharing their joys and sorrows or walk with them praying at one of the many grottoes, gardens or Stations of the Cross in the woods.

Grottos

Along the pathways and amidst the trees are several grottos and religious sculptures dotting the landscape of the 120 acres of the Sorrowful Mother Shrine. Each grotto is dedicated to a saint or a mystery of Christ's or the Blessed Virgin's life. Pilgrims may visit and pray at all the grottos or choose to hold special services at grottos honoring saints to which they have specific devotions. Each year pilgrims form processions to visit the grottos and honor their patron saints.

The following grottos are available to visitors:

• Alpine Grotto / Crucifixion Scene
• New Ukranian Martyrs of the 20th Century
• St. Francis of Assisi
• St. Anthony of Padua
• Our Lady of Grace Philippine Shrine
• Fatima Grotto
• Our Lady of Mt. Carmel
• Mary Queen of Martyrs
• Blessed Kateri Tekawitha
• St. Jude the Apostle
• Christ's Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane
• Sepulcher, the Tomb of Christ
• Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto
• Our Lady of Czestochowa Grotto
• SS. Isidore and Maria, Patrons of Farming Grotto
• St. Maria Faustina, Secretary of Divine Mercy Grotto
• St. Joseph and the Child Jesus

• Assumption of the Mother of God Grotto
• Crucifix, First World War Memorial
• Maria del Grazia (of Grace) Grotto
• Our Lady of Guadalupe Grotto
• Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta
• Holy Family Grotto
• St. Lucy, Patron of Eyes, Grotto
• St. Catherine of Siena Grotto
• St. George, Great Martyr, Patron of Scouting, Athletes and Military
• Sacred Heart of Jesus Statue
• Stained Glass Memorial (Fr. Fred Falce, C.PP.S., 1980-1987)
• St. Peregrine, Patron of those having cancer
• Our Lady of China and the Orient
• Sorrowful Mother Grotto
• Madonna of the Precious Blood and St. Gaspar del Bufalo Grotto
• St. Teresa. the Little Flower, Garden
• Memorial to the Unborn

Sorrowful Mother Shrine Chapel

Rebuilt after a fire in 1912 destroyed most of the building, the Sorrowful Mother Shrine Chapel is the heart of the Shrine today. It features paintings of the Seven Sorrows of Mary and a newly refurbished statue of the Sorrowful Mother holding the Body of her Son. The stained glass windows portray Mary's role in the life of the Church as expressed in the Litany of the Blessed Virgin and Sorrowful Mother: Mary, cause of our joy; Mary, help of Christians; Mary, most powerful; Mary, comforter of the afflicted. Other windows depict scenes of Christ's life.
Mass is celebrated in the chapel daily throughout the year.

Pieta Outdoor Chapel

The Outdoor Pieta Chapel was built in 1968 to accommodate the increasing number of pilgrims, especially from the Catholic ethnic communities of Toledo, Cleveland, Columbus, Youngstown, Detroit, Pittsburgh and Windsor, Ontario.  Outdoor Masses are held in the beautiful Outdoor Pieta Chapel on Saurdays & Sundays from May through September.