On Lourdes and Hope

[mspath]

February 11 is the Feast day at Lourdes in the French Pyrenees. Read more about this very special place in this current article.

How Lourdes became a byword for hope

St. Bernadette’s visions of the Virgin Mary in the 19th century inspired the pilgrimage site millions of Catholics flock to each year.

theconversation.com

 

[Former member 99290]

@mspath thank you for this interesting article. We will be visiting Lourdes in April while walking Chemin due Piemont Pyrénéen. Regardless of belief, this significant place has and will continue to provide comfort and hope for many.

 

[lt56ny]

We visited Lourdes many years ago. I am not Catholic or religious but I found the procession in the evening a powerful experience. The town left much to be desired. But that should not deter anyone from going to Lourdes.

 

[Mournes]

February 11 is the Feast day at Lourdes in the French Pyrenees. Read more about this very special place in this current article.

How Lourdes became a byword for hope

St. Bernadette’s visions of the Virgin Mary in the 19th century inspired the pilgrimage site millions of Catholics flock to each year.

theconversation.com

Thank you for posting this article about Lourdes on the feast day of Our Lady of Lourdes.In 2019 I was a volunteer there in
La Ruche which is a gîte and the home of Jean- Louis Doux.The rear of the gîte overlooks the Sanctuary and I have attached a photo taken from the balcony.
It just so happened the annual military pilgrimage was also taking place whilst I was there.
This pilgrimage was inaugurated in 1958
and in 2019 there were soldiers from more than 40 nations assembled in the Sanctuary.It was a wonderful spectacle.
I have attached some photos.
Unfortunately the Pandemic impacted on this event and hopefully it will resume in the near future.Lourdes is ,indeed ,a very special place and I was privileged to be there.

 

[AZ2Espana]

Yes, thank you.

I arrived late last night after 24 hours of travel. I attended the special 10:00 mass this morning which had terrific attendance (held inside due to rain) and the largest amount of priests that I have ever seen. Following mass, everyone proceeded to the Grotto where they completely opened it for the first time in almost 2 years. The line was long but the rain did not deter anyone.

This evening, the weather was dry and about 8C/46F. While not nearly the procession size that I witnessed in Fatima (August vs February; pre-pandemic vs now), it was impressive nonetheless. A truly special day for me!

One more night in Lourdes and it's off to the Camino Aragones for 1-2 days. Cheers, Jeff

 

[NicMen]

We visited Lourdes many years ago. I am not Catholic or religious but I found the procession in the evening a powerful experience. The town left much to be desired. But that should not deter anyone from going to Lourdes.

I loved Lourdes, which was my starting point in 2016. I lit a candle before I started walking for those suffering in Syria at the time. The evening procession was beautiful and the morning mass in the grotto was said in several languages, including arabic. Truly a place of peace.