Our Lady of Lourdes

The Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to 14-year old Bernadette Soubirous on eighteen occasions at Lourdes. Lourdes has become a major place of Roman Catholic pilgrimage and of miraculous healings. The 150th Jubilee of the first apparition took place on 11 February 2008.

Lourdes is located in southern France in the foothills of the Pyrenees mountains. It is a small market town and has a population of around 15,000, but it is able to take in some 5,000,000 pilgrims and tourists every season.

Sanctuary of our Lady of Lourdes or The Domain (as it is more commonly called)

Yearly from March to October the Domain is a place of mass pilgrimage. The spring water from the grotto possesses healing properties. 200 million people have visited the shrine since 1860 and the Church has officially recognized 69 miraculous healings. Cures are examined using strict criteria for authenticity and authentic miracle healing with no physical or psychological basis other than the healing power of the water.

There are several churches within the Domain.

The Crypt was the first of the churches to be completed and is today among the smallest. The nave is small and a notable feature are the enormous pillars which support the weight of the Upper Basilica which was constructed on top of it.

The Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, known as the Upper Basilica, was the second church to be completed and it was consecrated in 1876. It is an impressive, elaborate building in Gothic style and on one side seems to emerge directly from the rock of Massabielle (the sanctuary is directly above the Grotto).

The Rosary Basilica is the third church to be completed in 1899. It was consecrated in 1901 and has a capacity of 1,500 worshippers. Its style is influenced by Byzantine architecture. The nave is open and circular, surmounted by a dome.

The Basilica of St. Pius X, known as the Underground Basilica, is the largest and most controversial of the Domain's churches. It was completed in 1958 in anticipation of the enormous crowds expected in Lourdes for the centenary of the Apparitions. A modern, concrete building, it is almost entirely underground (part of the building lies beneath the Boulevard Père Rémi Sempé above). When full it can accommodate 25,000 worshippers. The Underground Basilica is stylistically very different from the previous two basilicas. The concrete of its construction has been left bare throughout, making it gloomy and uninviting inside.

 

There are other churches and chapels in the Domain - Church of St. Bernadette, Chapel of Reconciliation and St. Joseph's Chapel.  Other areas for prayers include the Crowned Statue and Rosary Square.

 

The Grotto of Massabielle

In contrast to the grandness of Rosary Square and the various basilicas, the grotto at Massabielle where St Bernadette's visions took place is very simple and stark. The recess of the grotto itself is undecorated, although a plain stone altar and lectern have been placed there so that Mass can be said. Above the main recess is the niche where the apparitions took place and the statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary now stands. A large stand of candles next to the altar is kept burning during the season.

The spring that Bernadette is said to have dug can be seen at the rear of the grotto, shielded by a glass cover. Pilgrims can process through the grotto and it is traditional to touch the rocks directly under the statue; indeed so many people have done this that the stones have become polished.

Thanks to Joseph & Kate who sent these two postcards during their visit to Lourdes (end May 2014)