Lourdes France

We caught the 9:30 train from Barcelona to Lourdes, four trains later, at 6 pm, we arrived in Lourdes. Finally found a taxi to get us to the hotel with 30 minutes to shower and make our way up the hill to our diner reservation. It was very hot, but we finally cooled down and had a lovely French dinner. Sated and tired, we went back to the hotel to settle in, planning on getting up at 6 am to see the Grotto before sunrise.

We slept until 7:30! Hurriedly, we dressed and headed to the Grotto. Needless to say we were not the first people there and Mass was being said in Italian. We sat for mass and it was very moving to be in that place where The Virgin Mary appeared to a 14 year old illiterate schoolgirl named Bernadette 18 times from February 11th to July 16th, 1885. Bernadette’s story is a miraculous and inspiring one.

On a cold February day, Bernadette was with her sisters looking for firewood. Her sisters crossed a small canal, barefoot, and this was very dangerous for Bernadette because she had always been a sickly child. Seeing no other way she started to remove her socks to cross. At that moment she felt a gust of wind. She looked up to what was called the Massabielle Grotto: a dark grotto of craggy rock and wild brush the locals considered haunted or enchanted or both. About 15 feet above the ground she saw a white rose bush growing in a dark niche in the rock. To Brenadette astonishment, the niche suddenly brightened and in the light appeared a young, exceedingly beautiful female figure. She wore a long white dress with a blue sash, a long white veil covering her hair, and a yellow rose on each bare foot. Hanging from her arm was a rosary with large white beads on a golden chain, finished by a large crucifix. Her hands were grasped in prayer.

Bernadette reached into her pocket and prayed the rosary with the Lady. When the apparition was finished all returned to normal. Her sisters returning had seen nothing. Her life now upended, she worried when she couldn’t return to the Grotto. Over the next five months, Bernadette had 18 apparitions. She was the only one that could see the Lady and her name for her was “Aquero”. In the local language it meant “that one”. Sometimes when Bernadette went to the Grotto, The Lady would not appear. Sometimes people would discourage her from going, not believing she was seeing anything. The parish priest insisted she ask The Lady what her name was, but the Lady would not answer. Once, during an apparition, Bernadette fell to her knees clawing at the ground which became muddy. The healing spring had been located. Another time The Lady told Bernadette to tell the people “Penance, Penance, Penance!”. Priests, doctors and civil officials observed Bernadette in her ecstasy, with the 400 people surrounding her, trying to authenticate her visions. Miracles began to happen to people who came to pray with Bernadette. In March The Lady told Bernadette to tell the priests she desired a Cathedral to be built at Massabielle and that she wanted the people to come there in a procession. By now word was traveling all over France of the miracles and big crowds were coming to the Grotto to witness what was happening. During one of the last apparitions, on the Catholic Feast Day of the Annunciation, Bernadette asked “Aquero” again for her name. The Lady smiled in silence. Then she slipped her rosary over her right arm, unfolded her hands, raised her eyes to heaven and said “I am the Immaculate Conception”.

The parish priest was dumfounded when Bernadette rushed in with the name. Just four years prior Pope Pius IX had finalized the argument about the Immaculate Conception and proclaimed it official church dogma. The Immaculate Conception meant only a perfect vessel could hold perfection itself. Mary was conceived without sin to carry within her Jesus. By using these words, the Lady in the Grotto affirmed the new dogma, acknowledged her heavenly identity and legitimated Bernadette’s visions. And being an illiterate young woman, it was impossible that Bernadette could have made any of it up.

Bernadette was made a Saint and has beautiful stories surrounding the rest of her short life. She died at age 35 in 1879. I encourage you to read more about her. The book I read was LOURDES Font of Faith, Hope, and Charity.

John and I had the privilege to walk in the Torchlight Procession with our lit candles. I was moved to tears along the way. When the crowd sang the “Ave Maria” it was amazing. There were over 1,000 plus people our night.

The next morning we walked to the Grotto and attended mass there. We walked past the baths, where people line up to wait for their turn to bathe in the water from the original spring Bernadette uncovered. If they are not healed physically people are healed spiritually- the stories are so beautiful.

The rest of this special morning we walked the path through Lourdes to the places Bernadette and her family lived and worshipped. We were impressed by the quiet and respectful attitude of every person we encountered. It was, and is, to us, a very holy and sacred spot on this earth.