Be There or Be Square

“All religions, arts and sciences are branches of the same tree.  All these aspirations are directed toward ennobling man’s life, lifting it from the sphere of mere physical existence and leading the individual towards freedom.”

- Albert Einstein, “Moral Decay”, 1937

Any list of “must see” places in Iowa would be woefully incomplete without including the Grotto of the Redemption in West Bend.  Although essentially a religious shrine anyone who visits will be moved at this amazing display of one man’s devotion.

This multi-layered complex of grottos was the expression of gratitude to Mother Mary by Father Paul Dobberstein.  It consists primarily of a number of interconnected grottos occupying multiple levels, connected by ramps and stairs that sometimes wind through the massive structure.

 

Built by hand of rocks, precious, and semi-precious stones the Grotto seems out of place in the cornfields of Northwestern Iowa.  The structure of the complex includes agate, amethyst, azurite, malachite, drusy quartz, calcite, barite, jasper, and even petrified wood.  The stones come from all over the world, including Oklahoma, Brazil, and the Andes Mountains.

As a young seminarian Father Dobberstein was stricken with a severe case of pneumonia.  He prayed to the Virgin Mary to intercede, and eventually recovered from his illness.

In 1898 Father Dobberstein was assigned to Sts. Peter and Paul church in West Bend, Iowa.  There he began stock piling the stones and rocks he would need for his vision.  Construction of the Grotto began in 1912.

Father Dobberstein did have help with his labors.  In 1912 Matt Szerensce, straight from high school, took a job as grotto collaborator, and started a 52 year career of intense labor.  No one knows for sure how many total hours the two men worked, but every stone of the grotto was lifted by hand.

When Father Dobberstein was 74 years old Father Greving was sent to West Bend to take over Dobberstein's clerical duties.  Father Dobberstein was eventually called home, on July 24th, 1954.  Greving and Szerensce continued the work.  In 1959 Matt Szerensce finally retired.
 

The complex is made of 9 separate Grottos, each depicting a scene in the life of Christ.  A moving depiction of Mother Mary holding the body of Jesus beneath the cross adorns the peak of the structure.  Statues include not only the birth and crucifixion of Jesus, but Adam and Eve being expelled from the Garden, and Moses presenting the Commandments. The complex also includes a garden area to sit in quiet contemplation.

The Grotto grounds includes not only the Grotto itself and Sts Peter and Paul Church, but also includes a campground, a café,  and a gift shop.  Between the Grotto and the campgrounds a small pond is home to a flock of swans.

Also on the grounds is a museum with it’s own collection of gem stones.  They also show a video depicting the history of the Grotto.

 

The Grotto of the Redemption is not only the largest man made grotto in the world, it is also the largest collection of precious stones and gems in the world.  A definite must see in Iowa, it is estimated that 100,000 tourists have visited the Grotto.

Oscar Wilde wrote, “No great artist ever sees things as they really are.  If he did, he would cease to be an artist.”  We can be forever grateful to Father Dobberstein for sharing his vision.

 

And if you go, say hi to the swans for me.