Issue No. 19

He smiled. “They are a test of faith as they
are very heavy”.
“The disabled, diseased and marginalized
are in the majority here“ said an English
pilgrim. He was carrying a 2-litre plastic jerry
can of complimentary cave water. “Pope
John Paul 11 said Lourdes is the place
where heaven and earth pursue a dialogue.
“Lourdes is a very special. It has been
blessed. Some come for adoration. Or
consolation. Or confession. To call for
intercession or renew their baptismal vows.
Or remember the Beatitudes. Others just to
observe. Hope and fraternity are palpable
here. Kindness too. You find yourself in a
sea of people devoted to the service of
others.”
160 years since the first
apparation at Lourdes
2018 sees the 160th anniversary of the first
apparition when on February 11th the Virgin
Mary appeared to fourteen-year-old
Bernadette Soubirous while she was
collecting firewood. Seventeen apparitions
of “Aquero” (the lady) followed until July
16th.
You can follow the “Jubilee Walk “and see
Bernadette’s birthplace and “le cachot” (or
dungeon) in the Rue Petits-Fosses where
she lived in poverty after her father lost his
mill business and cholera struck the town.
You can also visit the church where she
received her first Communion and the
nearby village of Bartres where she tended
sheep.
Bernadette described her apparition as 'uo
petito damizelo' ("a young girl"). At first, she
mistook it for a demonic apparition thinking it
a “revenant” or soul returning from
purgatory. The apparition did not speak until
the third appearance and in Occitan, the
local patois. It suggested she used a lighted
candle for protection. Thus the torchlight
procession. The small figure in the flowing
white robe and roses on her feet told
Bernadette to build chapels and kiss the
ground as penance. On her ninth visitation
she showed the shepherd girl a miraculous
spring.