Revisiting the place of miracles
On February 11,1858, the history of the miraculous Grotto at Lourdes began. There was a young girl named Bernadette Subirous who went to gather wood so her family could cook their meals for the next day. She had to cross a little river to find the firewood and as she was taking off her shoes in front of the grotto (as she did not wish to wet them), she heard a gust of wind. The trees in the meadow were not moving so she continued to remove her shoes but as she did, she heard the same sound of the wind. She looked up in the direction of the grotto and she saw a lady dressed in white — she had on a white dress and a blue sash with a yellow rose on each foot, the same color as the chain of her rosary.
Young Bernadette thought she was seeing things so she rubbed her eyes and looked again. She took her rosary, but in her shock she could not make the sign of the cross. The vision made the sign of the cross, and Bernadette, with her hand trembling, succeeded in making the sign of the cross and saying the rosary. The vision fingered the beads of her rosary but did not move her lips. When Bernadette finished her rosary, the vision suddenly disappeared.
There were a total of 18 apparitions by Our Lady to Bernadette Soubirous and in the course of these apparitions, she spoke these words: a) “Would you be so kind as to come here for 15 days?” b) “I do not promise you happiness in this world but in the other;” c) “Penance, penance, penance. You will pray to God for sinners. Go and kiss the ground for the conversion of sinners;” d) “Go and drink at the spring and wash yourself there. You will eat the plant over there;” e) “Go and tell the priests that people should come here in procession; that a chapel should be built here;” and f) “I am the Immaculate Conception” (facts taken from Lourdes magazine, jubilee edition).
This year marks the 150th anniversary of the miracle at Lourdes. It must be a very important milestone for the Catholic Church because even Pope Benedict XVI is visiting on September 13, 14 and 15.
In 2005, a very special friend, whom I consider my prayer warrior, brought me on my first pilgrimage to Lourdes. I am not a religious fanatic but there was something about these holy grounds that made me feel very peaceful and close to Jesus and Mother Mary. Seeing the infirm in their wheelchairs being helped by volunteers to dip in the miraculous waters opened my eyes to the power of faith, hope and love. For it could only be their strong faith in these miraculous waters, their hope of getting cured, and their love for Our Lady that draw thousands of them to worship in these holy grounds. The devotion and selflessness of the volunteers helping the sick in their wheel-chairs strengthened my faith in human kindness. Since my first visit in 2005, a yearly pilgrimage to Lourdes is a must in my agenda. My prayer warrior knows of my devotion to Lourdes and so no matter if he is in the farthest corner of Africa, he makes it a point to join me in my yearly pilgrimage to Lourdes. There is something about prayer that seals the bond of friendships, and what could be more binding than doing a pilgrimage together? I invite friends who wish to come and join me in my pilgrimage and this year, there were five of us.
We took a high-speed (TGV) train to Lourdes from Paris. It was a six-and-a-half-hour train ride and it was almost midnight when we arrived there. I was so tired but the moment I breathed the sacred air of Lourdes, I felt invigorated.
We went to the Grotto every day for three days. We attended daily mass in the Basilica, joined the 3 p.m. rosary by the Grotto, lined up and joined the sick in touching the rocks of the Grotto (sprinkling ourselves with the miraculous waters seeping out of the rocks), and joined the 9 p.m. procession carrying our blessed candles, praying and singing with the crowd. We bought a lot of rosaries to give away to our friends, blessed by the priest and which we rubbed against the miraculous rocks. We also filled our jars with the miraculous waters that one can get from their fountains. We all agreed that these were among the happiest and most spirit-filled three days of our lives.
For those interested to go to Lourdes this jubilee year, I can recommend some hotels that are walking distance from the Grotto: the Hotel Mercure, Grand Hotel Moderne, Grande Hotel de la Grotte, and Hotel Eliseo. The website for these and other hotels is at www.cometolourdes.com.
