JUNEAU, Alaska (CNS) — There is no doubt that nature is a prime attraction at the Shrine of St. Therese.
Thousands of visitors each year make the short drive from downtown Juneau to the 46-acre site, a forest of Sitka spruce and western hemlock overlooking waters of the Inside Passage and the Chilkat Range.
Along the shrine’s many paths, people enjoy wide vistas of water and ice-frosted mountains. Some sit to reflect or pray on stone benches inscribed with Scripture passages.
A small island forest of spruce and hemlock envelop chapel at Shrine of St. Therese in Juneau, Alaska. (CNS Photo/Nancy Wiechec)
The open space muffles sounds of flapping waterfowl, barking sea lions and water lapping against the shoreline. A gravel causeway — foot traffic only — leads to a tiny island and the simple chapel dedicated to the patroness of Alaska, St. Therese of Lisieux.
“It truly is a blessing for us,” said Juneau Bishop Edward J. Burns, who calls the shrine “the jewel” of the diocese.
“You see the aquatic life breaking the surface out there in the water. … You see the vast mountains. … You see the beauty of Shrine Island and the peace it brings. … People come from miles around,” he told Catholic News Service.
Bishop Burns said local residents and visitors alike arrive to witness the “splendor of God in all of creation.”
Some come to fish salmon or to catch glimpses of whales making way down Lynn Canal. Others, like one man recovering from recent surgery, come simply to pray in the quiet chapel.
Day visitors have plenty to experience. Highlights include the chapel and Shrine Island, the slightly uphill but paved Good Shepherd Rosary and Grotto Trail and the Merciful Love Labyrinth. The rosary trail ends at a grotto featuring a replica of the Pieta.
There is a small gift and bookshop near the main lodge. Mass is celebrated in the chapel Sundays at 1:30 p.m. from Memorial Day weekend through the first Sunday of September.
Bishop Edward J. Burns of Juneau, Alaska, a frequent visitor to the Shrine of St. Therese, said everyone, not just Catholics, is welcome to experience the peace and beauty of the unique retreat. The place of retreat and respite with breathtaking views has been attracting visitors for 70 years. (CNS photo/Nancy Wiechec)
The remains of Catholics and non-Catholics are interred at the shrine in outdoor niches of black granite overlooking Pearl Harbor. On a rock near the columbarium, mourners have piled up stones to show their respect for the deceased.
Cruise-ship passengers disembarking in Juneau can find their way to the retreat by taxi or rental car. It’s about a 23-mile drive along Glacier Highway.
Out-of-towners shouldn’t miss a stop at the Mendenhall Glacier, a short diversion on the way to the shrine. The retreating river of ice is a spectacular site that visitors can experience close-up.
At No. 2 and 4, the glacier and the Shrine of St. Therese rank among TripAdvisor’s top sites to see in Juneau.
After a recent visit to the shrine, a family from Canada wrote in a guest book, “Wow! What more could be said, than perhaps, praise God!”
Beside its beauty and tranquility, the retreat also stands as a testament to Alaska’s mission history.
Two French Jesuit missionaries enabled the retreat not long after a deeply spiritual young French monastic, Therese of Lisieux, was declared a saint in 1925. She was a great admirer of missionaries.
One of the Jesuits was Bishop Joseph R. Crimont, the first bishop of Alaska, who is said to have known the family of St. Therese. Bishop Crimont placed her as patroness over the mission territory. The other was Father William G. LeVasseur, an ardent devotee of “The Little Flower.”
Visitors walk along causeway after visiting chapel on Shrine Island at Shrine of St. Therese in Juneau, Alaska (CNS Photo/Nancy Wiechec)
The bishop and priest secured a small plot of federal forestland and building began in 1932. The chapel, constructed of beach stone from the shoreline, was dedicated in 1941 on the feast of Christ the King.
Another early supporter of the shrine, also a Jesuit, was Father Bernard R. Hubbard, a geologist and explorer. His adventurous expeditions into the Alaskan territory starting in 1927 earned him the name the “glacier priest.” Father Hubbard raised funds and secured goods for the shrine. The stainless-steel boat he used to traverse the Alaskan waterways is kept on the grounds.
The Catholic-run retreat is open to all and it accommodates overnight guests.
“The shrine welcomes everyone,” said Bishop Burns, a frequent visitor who over Lent hosted a group of homeless men there for a day of respite.
The main lodge and four cabins are available for rent by individuals, groups or families. There is no maid service. Guests must leave the premises clean and in order.
The rustic Hermitage Cabin, for visitors “who want the bare minimum during their spiritual journey,” can be reserved for $40 a night for one person.
A modern cabin called the “Little Flower Retreat” is tucked a ways away from the main lodge. It has two queen bedrooms, a full bathroom and a well-appointed kitchen. Set on stilts, the cabin offers panoramic views of the Inside Passage and Shrine Island. It’s available for $210 a night.
The log lodge, which can sleep 22 people, has 10 bedrooms, three bathrooms, a large dining area and living room and an updated kitchen.
The Shrine of St. Therese is open year-round. Reservation information is available on the shrine’s website, http://www.shrineofsainttherese.org, or by calling (907) 780-6112.
Priests of the Diocese of Juneau gather in the Shrine of St. Therese chapel during their annual retreat.
A bronze statue of Alaska’s patroness is set outside the chapel at the Shrine of St. Therese in Juneau. (Nancy Wiechec)
A rusted anchor shackle hangs from the bow of “Libby” at the Shrine of St. Therese in Juneau, Alaska. The stainless-steel boat was used by Jesuit explorer Father Bernard Hubbard, whose legendary expeditions to Alaska in the early half of the 1900s earned him the name “the glacier priest.” (CNS photo/Nancy Wiechec)
Visitors to the Shrine of St. Therese in Juneau, Alaska, can see the stainless-steel boat “Libby” used by Jesuit explorer Father Bernard Hubbard. His expeditions in Alaska in the first half of the 1900s were so legendary that he became known as the “glacier priest.” (CNS photo/Nancy Wiechec)
A sign directs visitors at the Shrine of St. Therese in Juneau, Alaska. The place of retreat and respite with its breathtaking views has been attracting visitors for 70 years. Operated by the Diocese of Juneau year round, its lodge and cabins are available for rent to anyone who respects the spiritual nature of the shrine. (CNS photo/Nancy Wiechec)
Clouds linger over the snowcapped Chilkat Mountains in this view from the Shrine of St. Therese in Juneau, Alaska. The place of retreat and respite with breathtaking views has been attracting visitors for 70 years. (CNS photo/Nancy Wiechec)
Visitors look out over the sea at the Shrine of St. Therese in Juneau, Alaska. The place of retreat and respite with breathtaking views has been attracting visitors for 70 years. (CNS photo/Nancy Wiechec) (May 20, 2014)
The Little Flower Retreat cabin at the Shrine of St. Therese in Juneau, Alaska, offers its guests panoramic views of the waters of the Inside Passage, Shrine Island and the Chilkat Mountains. The place of retreat and respite with breathtaking views has been attracting visitors for 70 years. (CNS photo/Nancy Wiechec) (May 20, 2014)
A crucifix dangling from a long rosary is seen against logs in the dining room of the retreat lodge at the Shrine of St. Therese in Juneau, Alaska. The place of retreat and respite with breathtaking views has been attracting visitors for 70 years. (CNS photo/Nancy Wiechec) (May 20, 2014)
Priests of the Diocese of Juneau congregate in the living space of the main lodge at the Shrine of St. Therese in Juneau, Alaska. The priests were at the shrine for a few days in April for an annual retreat. The place of retreat and respite with breathtaking views has been attracting visitors for 70 years. (CNS photo/Nancy Wiechec) (May 20, 2014)
The Hermitage Cabin at the Shrine of St. Therese in Juneau, Alaska, is for those visitors who want “the bare minimum during their spiritual journey.” The structure was built in the 1940s for a priest who ministered to the needs of people visiting the shrine for spiritual direction and healing. The place of retreat and respite with breathtaking views has been attracting visitors for 70 years. (CNS photo/Nancy Wiechec) (May 20, 2014)
The sun sets behind the Chilkat Mountains April 23 in this view from Shrine of St. Therese in Juneau, Alaska. The place of retreat and respite with breathtaking views has been attracting visitors for 70 years. (CNS photo/Nancy Wiechec) (May 20, 2014)
Father Thomas Weise kayaks off the shoreline of the Shrine of St. Therese in Juneau, Alaska, April 22. The place of retreat and respite with breathtaking views has been attracting visitors for 70 years. (CNS photo/Nancy Wiechec) (May 20, 2014)
This 1930s log cabin serves as the retreat center at the Shrine of St. Therese in Juneau, Alaska. The place of retreat and respite with breathtaking views has been attracting visitors for 70 years. (CNS photo/Nancy Wiechec) (May 20, 2014)
The chapel at the Shrine of St. Therese in Juneau, Alaska, is constructed of beach stone plucked from the surrounding shoreline. The place of retreat and respite with breathtaking views has been attracting visitors for 70 years. (CNS photo/Nancy Wiechec) (May 20, 2014)
Visitors walk the causeway toward Shrine Island at the Shrine of St. Therese in Juneau, Alaska, April 22. In the background is the shrine’s retreat center, a large log cabin that can accommodate 22 people. The place of retreat and respite with breathtaking views has been attracting visitors for 70 years. (CNS photo/Nancy Wiechec)
Stones left by mourners sit in a pile on a rock near the columbarium at the Shrine of St. Therese in Juneau, Alaska. The place of retreat and respite with breathtaking views has been attracting visitors for 70 years. (CNS photo/Nancy Wiechec) (May 20, 2014)
Father Thomas Weise, pastor of St. Catherine of Siena and St. Rose of Lima parishes in the Diocese of Juneau, Alaska, makes his way along the causeway at the Shrine of St. Therese in Juneau during a priests’ retreat in April. The place of retreat and respite with breathtaking views has been attracting visitors for 70 years. (CNS photo/Nancy Wiechec) (May 20, 2014)
A small island forest of spruce and hemlock envelop the chapel at the Shrine of St. Therese in Juneau, Alaska. The place of retreat and respite with breathtaking views has been attracting visitors for 70 years. (CNS photo/Nancy Wiechec) (May 19, 2014)
Juneau Bishop Edward J. Burns gives directions to visitors at the Shrine of St. Therese in Juneau, Alaska, April 22. The place of retreat and respite with breathtaking views has been attracting visitors for 70 years. (CNS photo/Nancy Wiechec) (May 19, 2014)
Bishop Edward J. Burns of Juneau, Alaska, a frequent visitor to the Shrine of St. Therese, said everyone, not just Catholics, is welcome to experience the peace and beauty of the unique retreat. The place of retreat and respite with breathtaking views has been attracting visitors for 70 years. (CNS photo/Nancy Wiechec) (May 19, 2014)
Women sit and talk on one of the benches that line the paths at the Shrine of St. Therese in Juneau, Alaska. Each bench is inscribed with a Scripture passage. The place of retreat and respite with breathtaking views has been attracting visitors for 70 years. (CNS photo/Nancy Wiechec) (May 19, 2014)
Visitors return via the causeway after visiting the chapel on Shrine Island at the Shrine of St. Therese in Juneau, Alaska. The place of retreat and respite with breathtaking views has been attracting visitors for 70 years. (CNS photo/Nancy Wiechec) (May 19, 2014)
The Inside Passage 
By Nancy Wiechec, Catholic News Service
JUNEAU, Alaska (CNS) — There is no doubt that nature is a prime attraction at the Shrine of St. Therese.
Thousands of visitors each year make the short drive from downtown Juneau to the 46-acre site, a forest of Sitka spruce and western hemlock overlooking waters of the Inside Passage and the Chilkat Range.
Along the shrine’s many paths, people enjoy wide vistas of water and ice-frosted mountains. Some sit to reflect or pray on stone benches inscribed with Scripture passages.
The open space muffles sounds of flapping waterfowl, barking sea lions and water lapping against the shoreline. A gravel causeway — foot traffic only — leads to a tiny island and the simple chapel dedicated to the patroness of Alaska, St. Therese of Lisieux.
“It truly is a blessing for us,” said Juneau Bishop Edward J. Burns, who calls the shrine “the jewel” of the diocese.
“You see the aquatic life breaking the surface out there in the water. … You see the vast mountains. … You see the beauty of Shrine Island and the peace it brings. … People come from miles around,” he told Catholic News Service.
Bishop Burns said local residents and visitors alike arrive to witness the “splendor of God in all of creation.”
Some come to fish salmon or to catch glimpses of whales making way down Lynn Canal. Others, like one man recovering from recent surgery, come simply to pray in the quiet chapel.
Day visitors have plenty to experience. Highlights include the chapel and Shrine Island, the slightly uphill but paved Good Shepherd Rosary and Grotto Trail and the Merciful Love Labyrinth. The rosary trail ends at a grotto featuring a replica of the Pieta.
There is a small gift and bookshop near the main lodge. Mass is celebrated in the chapel Sundays at 1:30 p.m. from Memorial Day weekend through the first Sunday of September.
The remains of Catholics and non-Catholics are interred at the shrine in outdoor niches of black granite overlooking Pearl Harbor. On a rock near the columbarium, mourners have piled up stones to show their respect for the deceased.
Cruise-ship passengers disembarking in Juneau can find their way to the retreat by taxi or rental car. It’s about a 23-mile drive along Glacier Highway.
Out-of-towners shouldn’t miss a stop at the Mendenhall Glacier, a short diversion on the way to the shrine. The retreating river of ice is a spectacular site that visitors can experience close-up.
At No. 2 and 4, the glacier and the Shrine of St. Therese rank among TripAdvisor’s top sites to see in Juneau.
After a recent visit to the shrine, a family from Canada wrote in a guest book, “Wow! What more could be said, than perhaps, praise God!”
Beside its beauty and tranquility, the retreat also stands as a testament to Alaska’s mission history.
Two French Jesuit missionaries enabled the retreat not long after a deeply spiritual young French monastic, Therese of Lisieux, was declared a saint in 1925. She was a great admirer of missionaries.
One of the Jesuits was Bishop Joseph R. Crimont, the first bishop of Alaska, who is said to have known the family of St. Therese. Bishop Crimont placed her as patroness over the mission territory. The other was Father William G. LeVasseur, an ardent devotee of “The Little Flower.”
The bishop and priest secured a small plot of federal forestland and building began in 1932. The chapel, constructed of beach stone from the shoreline, was dedicated in 1941 on the feast of Christ the King.
Another early supporter of the shrine, also a Jesuit, was Father Bernard R. Hubbard, a geologist and explorer. His adventurous expeditions into the Alaskan territory starting in 1927 earned him the name the “glacier priest.” Father Hubbard raised funds and secured goods for the shrine. The stainless-steel boat he used to traverse the Alaskan waterways is kept on the grounds.
The Catholic-run retreat is open to all and it accommodates overnight guests.
“The shrine welcomes everyone,” said Bishop Burns, a frequent visitor who over Lent hosted a group of homeless men there for a day of respite.
The main lodge and four cabins are available for rent by individuals, groups or families. There is no maid service. Guests must leave the premises clean and in order.
The rustic Hermitage Cabin, for visitors “who want the bare minimum during their spiritual journey,” can be reserved for $40 a night for one person.
A modern cabin called the “Little Flower Retreat” is tucked a ways away from the main lodge. It has two queen bedrooms, a full bathroom and a well-appointed kitchen. Set on stilts, the cabin offers panoramic views of the Inside Passage and Shrine Island. It’s available for $210 a night.
The log lodge, which can sleep 22 people, has 10 bedrooms, three bathrooms, a large dining area and living room and an updated kitchen.
The Shrine of St. Therese is open year-round. Reservation information is available on the shrine’s website, http://www.shrineofsainttherese.org, or by calling (907) 780-6112.
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