Farewell

Thank you to all of my readers who have experienced this journey with me, I have now arrived home and it has been a truly wonderful experience. If you have any questions, please feel free to leave a comment, and I'll get back to you.

"...And Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart" - Luke 2:19 - remember, you're never alone, Our Lady, the Immaculate Conception, The Mother of God is always watching over you, caring for you, and forever loving you.

God Bless You All,

Kind regards,
Savannah Walker 

Day 4: Reflection on my Pilgrimage

So today is my final day in Lourdes, and it is sad that such a wonderful and enlightening journey has to come to an end. However, since I am not leaving for the airport until this evening, I thought I would reflect with all of you about my experiences throughout this pilgrimage.

When I first learnt of the Church Teaching about Mary, I was amazed – how could someone so young and pure be chosen for such a responsibility? But I know why now, she had faith – not only in herself, but in others – the poor, sinners, and those who are simply looking for forgiveness. She knew that if they have faith and embrace the Holy Spirit, they will find a light within themselves that is white, bright and pure of love and God’s help and spirit.

The council of Ephesus taught us that Jesus is truly God, and because of this, it makes Mary the Mother of God – she is the bearer of God. Jesus is without sin – not only has he obtained this from the Holy Spirit, but his mother also – Jesus was born whilst Mary was a virgin, as she ‘was conceived of the Holy Spirit, and born the Virgin Mary’. She was the depiction of the Immaculate Conception; she had no prior stain of original sin, nor did she reject the responsibility of bearing the son of God.

This all links into my pilgrimage and the story of Bernadette Soubirous as Our Lady appeared to Bernadette to not only pray with her, but to ask for her help – just like the angel Gabriel asked for Mary’s help. Our Lady needed Bernadette to get the local priests to build a chapel so that pilgrims could come in procession to ask for both forgiveness and bathe in the healing waters of the Massabielle.

No matter what evil or sin has been bestowed upon us, we can make a journey on our own or with others to somewhere that we can reflect and appreciate the world we have today, and how those before us were able to grant that to us. Through reflection, we are able to thank both Jesus for his contributions and sacrifices to the Catholic Society then and now, but also his mother, Mary; without her, how could we be here today? She has saved humanity, even if humanity doesn’t realize. 

Day 3: Learning more about Bernadette Soubirous

So after a late night of processions, we had a late start to the day, and were lucky enough to go on a walking tour of the Boly Mill, which was where Bernadette was born (January 7, 1884), as well as going to the Cachot, which is an abandoned prison where Bernadette’s family lived.

The Boly Mill

The Cachot

After visiting the Boly Mill and Cachot, we went to see the nursing home where Bernadette attended school and made her First Holy Communion.

Bernadette Soubirous

We also had the opportunity to visit the parish church and see Bernadette’s original Baptismal font and the cemetery where her parents and relatives now lay in peace.

Bernadette, however, passed away in a convent in the year of 1879. She was beautified in 1925 and canonized in 1933.

80 years of the canonization of Bernadette Soubirous

Here is a link to a YouTube video that was shown to us by our tour guide in relation to Bernadette's canonization: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zWTG6dwwBxk 

I found that today was quite a solemn one, as we were walking in the houses and in the footsteps of Bernadette Souribous - she was a young believer, and it would've been horrible at her time to have been persecuted and under judgement for her beliefs and faith in Our Lady. However, her determination to Our Lady proves that if you have faith, you are able to pull through the tough times and prove those who didn't believe you wrong. 

Day 2!

After the completion of the main tours, our second tour day consisted of participating in Masses, the 15 Stations of the Cross and the blessing of the sick, as well as visiting the Grotto of Massabielle, where the apparitions of Our Lady took place. We were also able to immerse ourselves in the baths where hundreds of miraculous healings took place.

Lourdes Station #3 - Jesus falls for the first time

Lourdes Station #4 - Jesus meets his blessed mother

Lourdes Station #12 - Jesus dies on the cross

The Stations of the Cross reminded me of Our Lady's greatest sacrifice - losing his son, his one true love, and her one beloved gift from God. She was gifted her child through the Holy Spirit - Our Lady was, and still is the Immaculate Conception - she was born and gifted her son Jesus without sin, a new beginning for both herself and her son, as well as the Catholic World. 

Grotto of the Massabielle

Today we also participated in a Mass, and it was truly beautiful. The weather was perfect, and the silence of nature really helped to reflect the serenity of the Grotto. The statue of Our Lady is the original depiction of Bernadette's apparitions, and it shows how her true and pure belief is still remembered and reflected today. 

A depiction of Bernadette's first apparition of Our Lady

In the evening, we participated in the torchlight processions, and these were truly breathtaking, some images from the night can be found below.

Day 1: First Tours of Our Lady of Lourdes!

I arrived in Lourdes one day ago, however, today marks the first day of my pilgrimage. In the morning, our tour guide explained that our pilgrimage and tour shall consist of visits to both the Basilica of the Rosary and the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception.

Basilica of the Rosary in Lourdes

The Basilica of the Immaculate Conception

Throughout this tour, I have been enlightened to the full story of how this beautiful and small village became such a well-known pilgrimage site…

On the 11^th of February in 1858, a young 14-year-old girl by the name of Bernadette Soubirous witnessed a magnificently beautiful apparition in a small village known as Lourdes, located in France. It was whilst she was gathering wood in a small grotto, known as the Massabielle, that Bernadette first saw a vision of Our Lady, surrounded by a brilliantly bright light. Bernadette was too afraid to approach Our Lady, so, instead, she prayed the Rosary, and throughout her prayers, Our Lady watched on in quiet approval before disappearing. It was not until her third visit to the grotto that Our Lady spoke, and when she did, she asked that Bernadette come to the grotto for fifteen days. Bernadette did as requested and listened to the messages that were delivered to her by Our Lady, but were from God – throughout these messages, he asked that his children should pray for sinners and repent. During the apparitions, Our Lady had given Bernadette a mission – she had requested that Bernadette tell the priests to build a chapel and come in procession to Lourdes.

During Our Lady’s 9^th apparition, the discovery of the miraculous spring in the grotto was made by Bernadette – its water are said to have healing powers and many miraculous healings, and, to this day, are attributed to it. Bernadette was scrutinised and questioned by hundreds of people on a daily basis; even the local pastor had accused Bernadette of lying, and that the apparitions were fake, and demanded that she ask Our Lady to show herself to prove she was not lying! It was on the feast of Annunciation that Our Lady declared to Bernadette “I am the Immaculate Conception”. It was after this statement made by Our Lady that caused the local people of Lourdes to cease their accusations of Bernadette’s faith in Our Lady.

The apparitions lasted until the 16^th of July in 1858. There were a total of 18 apparitions, and the year of 2008 marked the 150^th anniversary of the year of Lourdes. 

Throughout this journey, I would like to reflect on both how these tours will help me in strengthening my faith as a Catholic, and how this is influenced through my knowledge of the Catholic Church's teachings on Mary

I personally find that this site will help me strengthen my personal faith in God as the story of Bernadette and the apparitions of Our Lady shows that it does not matter who you are in the world, if you believe in God and truly believe that you can find inner peace through doing so, then you will be able to share that light and wisdom through prayer with God, and pass it on to friends, family and the world. 

The Catholic Church’s teachings on Mary tells us that she was conceived with the son of Christ without any sin – Bernadette not only believed in the Holy Spirit, but she embraced it through her soul through praying the Rosary and visiting the grotto where Our Lady appeared. And, on another note, not only does immaculate conception relate to someone without sin, but it also means beginning – Bernadette was only 14 at the time of Our Lady’s first apparition, and already her faith was strong – it was the beginning of her memory being remembered forever within the Catholic Church and worldwide community. 

Our Lady of Lourdes Site Map

I have yet to leave for France, however, I have found a map of the pilgrimage site that I wish to travel to, and would like to share with you all beforehand the features of Our Lady of Lourdes, as I may not be visiting all of the sites listed and visible below. Not only are my touring days planned, but I also have one free day where I am able to roam around and take in the beauties of this wonderful Marian Pilgrimage site. 

Site Map of Our Lady of Lourdes

1.     The upper Basilica of the Immaculate Conception (with tall spire)

2.     The lower Basilica of the Rosary

3.     The modern underground Basilica of St. Pius X

4.     The Crypt

5.     The Grotto where Our Lady appeared

6.     The Baths of the Water of Lourdes

7.     The Church of St. Bernadette

8.     The outdoor Stations of the Cross 

I have only researched before-hand of some of the more explicit details as to how and why
Lourdes became a famous Marian Pilgrimage site, and from what I can remember; a young
woman by the name of Bernadette was collecting wood from a grotto when Our Lady
appeared in a brilliant light. This occurred on the 11^th of February in 1858, and there were a
total of 18 apparitions that lasted until the 16^th of July in the same year.

I should have more details about both my tours and the stories associated with Our Lady of

Lourdes in the coming days. 

Introduction

Hello to my fellow blog readers,

I am a young devoted Catholic woman who wishes to go on a personal pilgrimage in order to reflect on both my own lifetime so far, as well as the Immaculate Mother of God. To do this, I have decided that my journey will take me to Our Lady of Lourdes, located in France. Our Lady of Lourdes is the most visited pilgrimage shrine in the Christian world, as there are currently over 6 million pilgrims that make the journey to Lourdes each year! And, it is estimated that since 1860, over 200 million pilgrims have visited this site!

I have heard that from 1864 through to 1872, the shrine was mostly a regional pilgrimage destination, and that it attracted about 30,000 people each year. And even though the shrine was not originally known for its miraculous curative powers, after 1873, when incidents of healing at the spring began to be reported, the shrine rapidly developed an international reputation.

I have planned to travel to Lourdes, and, I will be posting throughout my journey, as I wish to be fully immersed in this experience, and to be able to share with you the wondrous beauties of Our Lady. I will be recording what I can in my diary, and at the end of each day, I shall transfer it into a blog post for you all to read.

Thank you all, and if you have any questions, please feel free to ask, and I will get back to you as soon as I can!

Kind regards,
Savannah Walker