In 1952, a major relic of St. Odilia — a 4th-century virgin martyr of Cologne whom the Canons Regular of the Order of the Holy Cross had claimed as their patroness seven centuries earlier — was brought from a Crosier monastery in Belgium to the order's priory church in the Minnesota lakes country and enshrined in a marble reliquary at Onamia. The relic, a large portion of one of the saint's bones, had traveled an unlikely path: unearthed in Cologne in 1287 after the martyr herself appeared three times to a Crosier brother in Paris, carried to the order's motherhouse at Huy in present-day Belgium, thought lost in the French Revolution, and recovered from a parish church before crossing the Atlantic.
The shrine that resulted is modest in scale — a shrine within a working priory church, in a town of fewer than eight hundred people at the gateway to Minnesota's lake region, in one of the state's poorest counties. Yet it is canonically a national shrine, listed on the gcatholic registry of American national shrines and designated a Jubilee 2025 pilgrimage church by the Diocese of Saint Cloud. Pilgrims come for the healing devotion that has gathered around the relic: the Crosiers bless water by dipping it in the relic, asking God to give it "power against all diseases and bodily infirmities," and St. Odilia is invoked especially for afflictions of the eyes. A national novena runs each year from July 10 to July 18, her feast day, with petitions mailed from across the United States.
📜 History & Spiritual Significance
The story begins with the Crosier Order itself. In 1210, Blessed Theodore de Celles and four companions formed a community at Clairlieu, near Huy, in present-day Belgium, adopting the Rule of St. Augustine. The name "Crosier" comes from French croisés — "signed with the Cross." The order spread across the Low Countries and France over the following centuries, founding monasteries and priories.
St. Odilia entered the Crosier story in 1287. A 4th-century virgin martyr of Cologne — one of the companions of St. Ursula, martyred by Huns on the Rhine — she appeared three times to Crosier Brother John Novelan, O.S.C., of the Paris monastery. She told him God had asked her to be protectress of the Crosier Order and indicated where her relics could be found, under a pear tree in the garden of Arnulph in Cologne. Br. John and his priest companion, Fr. Louis, unearthed the relics on September 1, with the archbishop of Cologne present. The relics were carried to the Crosier motherhouse at Huy, arriving on July 18 — the date the Crosiers keep as her feast. Along the journey, numerous miracles were reported as people came in contact with the relics.
The centuries that followed were turbulent. The relics were kept at Huy, then thought lost during the French Revolution. A Crosier priest escaped with them, and they were later discovered in a parish church in Belgium. Returned to the order, a major relic was brought to Onamia in 1952 and enshrined in the priory church, establishing the National Shrine of St. Odilia.
The Crosiers' American chapter had begun earlier. Members of the order came from the Netherlands in 1910 to serve Dutch and Belgian immigrants, and by 1922 they had established a priory and school in Onamia, about ninety miles north of Minneapolis. The present Holy Cross Priory Church was built in 1950. Its 22 stained-glass windows, designed by Robert Pinart in 1955 with the Rambusch Company of New York, tell the story of St. Odilia's martyrdom entwined with the history of the Crosier Order. Until 1989 the chapel served as a seminary chapel; when the Crosiers closed their seminary after enrollment declined, the chapel became the parish church for Holy Cross Parish. In 2000, the order consolidated its smaller American communities into two — Onamia and Phoenix — and the national headquarters moved to Phoenix in 2007. Onamia is now a filial priory.
For the Jubilee Year 2025, Bishop Patrick M. Neary, C.S.C., of the Diocese of Saint Cloud designated the National Shrine of St. Odilia one of the diocese's pilgrimage churches, inviting the faithful to experience grace and reconciliation there.
☩ Pilgrimage Sites in Onamia
National Shrine of St. Odilia (Holy Cross Priory Church)
The shrine sits inside the Crosier priory church at 102 Crosier Drive North in Onamia, at the gateway to Minnesota's lake region. The Crosier Fathers and Brothers have been present in Onamia since 1910; the present church dates to 1950. Three devotional stations mark the shrine within the church: an icon of St. Odilia with two of her relics, designed as a window into heaven for prayer; a cycle of 22 stained-glass windows by Robert Pinart telling the story of her martyrdom and the entwined history of the Crosier Order; and an altar reliquary, a replica of the original reliquary in Belgium. A Marian shrine with an icon of Our Lady of Vladimir stands on the left side of the sanctuary.
The Crosiers bless water by dipping the St. Odilia relic in it, asking God to give it "power against all diseases and bodily infirmities." Many cures, especially of diseases of the eyes, are attributed to her intercession. Healing Masses with a ritual blessing using the relic are celebrated at different times of the year, and the ritual blessing is available by special arrangement with the Crosier priory.
🕯️ Annual Feast Days & Celebrations
Annual Healing Mass — a Sunday in mid-July, near July 18
The Crosier Fathers and Brothers celebrate an annual healing Mass in honor of the feast of St. Odilia on a Sunday in mid-July, close to her July 18 feast. The Mass includes the anointing of the sick and a ritual blessing with the relic of St. Odilia. A parish brunch follows, and no reservations are needed — tickets are sold at the door. The specific Sunday varies from year to year, as does the start time; pilgrims should confirm the date with the Crosiers through the shrine website.
National Novena to St. Odilia — July 10–18
The national novena in honor of St. Odilia begins on July 10 and ends on her feast day, July 18. Nine days of prayers are prayed, and petitions are sent from across the United States to be included. The Crosiers publish the novena prayers on their website. In addition to the annual novena, shorter novenas in honor of St. Odilia are prayed twice each month, beginning on the 5th and 17th.
Feast of St. Odilia — July 18
July 18 is the Crosier feast of St. Odilia — the date her relics arrived at the Crosier motherhouse in Huy, Belgium, in 1287. It is an order and diocesan observance, kept by the Crosiers, not a universal Roman-calendar solemnity. The feast is the culmination of the national novena.
🛏️ Where to Stay
Onamia has no lodging of its own. Pilgrims stay on the Mille Lacs lakefront and casino strip about nine miles north, within the same postal area.
Grand Casino Mille Lacs Hotel ⭐⭐⭐ — The closest full-service hotel to the shrine, about 14 km north on US-169, a ten-minute drive. A 494-room hotel attached to the Grand Casino with an indoor pool and several restaurants. Website
Eddy's Resort (boutique hotel) — A quieter, non-casino alternative on the western shore of Lake Mille Lacs, adjacent to Grand Casino with a complimentary shuttle between the two properties. 64 rooms plus four cabins. Seasonal closures apply (roughly October–November and March–April); open for the July novena. Website
Royal Inn & Suites, Milaca (hotel) — A budget hotel in the Mille Lacs county seat, about 35 km south on US-169, a twenty-five-minute drive to the shrine. The nearest non-casino, non-resort lodging for pilgrims travelling on a budget. Website
The Crosier priory has no public guesthouse. Pilgrims wishing to ask about a group or retreat stay on the grounds should contact the Crosier Fathers and Brothers through the shrine website.
🚗 Getting There
By Air: The nearest major airport is Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP), approximately 158 km (98 miles) south of Onamia. Rental cars are available on-site. The drive takes about ninety minutes via Interstate 94 west and US-169 north.
By Train: Amtrak's Empire Builder stops at St. Cloud, Minnesota, approximately 70 km (43 miles) south of Onamia. From St. Cloud, a rental car or taxi is needed for the drive north on US-169.
By Car: From the Twin Cities, take Interstate 94 west to US-169 north. The drive from Minneapolis to Onamia is approximately 145 km (90 miles). US-169 passes directly through Onamia; the shrine is on Crosier Drive North, just east of the highway.
📚 Further Reading
Marion Amberg. Monuments, Marvels, and Miracles: A Traveler's Guide to Catholic America — A one-volume guide to more than 500 Catholic holy sites across every U.S. state, including national shrines and miracle sites. Our Sunday Visitor, 2021.
Marion Amberg. Mary's Miracles: A Traveler's Guide to Catholic America — The companion volume from the same author and publisher, covering Marian shrines across the United States. Our Sunday Visitor, 2022.
🎥 Recommended Videos
St. Odilia, Patroness of the Crosiers — The Crosier Order's own channel tells the story of St. Odilia and the Crosier connection. (3 min)
Fr. Tim's Daytrip Pilgrimage to the National Shrine of St. Odilia — The shrine's associated parish documents a pilgrimage visit to the site. (3 min 35 sec)
Crosiers honor St. Odilia — The Crosier Order's own feast-day coverage. (3 min)
🔗 Useful Links
Crosier Fathers and Brothers — St. Odilia — Official shrine pages with history, visiting information, and novena prayers.
Crosier Fathers and Brothers — Onamia Community — The Crosier community page for their Onamia filial priory.
Diocese of Saint Cloud — Diocesan information for the diocese that includes the shrine.
🧭 Nearby Pilgrimage Destinations
Cold Spring (90 km) — Assumption Chapel, the "Grasshopper Chapel," built by German Catholic settlers after a locust-plague miracle in 1877. Minnesota's other small-town pilgrimage shrine, in Stearns County.
La Crosse (324 km) — Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, a Marian pilgrimage destination founded by Cardinal Burke in western Wisconsin.
L'Anse (405 km) — Shrine of Venerable Frederic Baraga, the "Snowshoe Priest" of the upper Great Lakes, in Michigan's Keweenaw Bay.
De Pere (474 km) — National Shrine of St. Joseph at St. Norbert College, holding the only papally crowned statue of St. Joseph in the United States.
Champion (489 km) — The only Church-approved Marian apparition site in the United States (Adele Brise, 1859); National Shrine of Our Lady of Champion in Wisconsin.
🪶 Closing Reflection
"St. Odilia has promised her intercession on behalf of the Crosiers and all those who invoke her aid. For centuries it has been the practice of the Crosiers to bless water in honor of St. Odilia, dipping her relic in it and asking God to give it 'power against all diseases and bodily infirmities.'"
— Crosier Fathers and Brothers, National Shrine of St. Odilia
