Our Lady of Lourdes

It was in February 11, 1858 that the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to Bernadette Soubirous in the hollow of a rock in Massabielle, Lourdes, France.

Bernadette went to Massabielle to gather firewood with her companions when she was left behind for the water was cold and she could not cross the river. She then heard the sound of a storm and saw the trees move and from the inside of the grotto, she saw came out, a golden colored cloud then a Lady, young and very beautiful, came and went at the entrance above the rosebush. The Lady signaled for her to come forward, without thinking she took out her rosary and went on her knees. The Lady nodded and took out a rosary herself and together they began to pray. Bernadette saw her as a young girl, in a white robe, with a blue ribbon on her waist. She had tight-fitting, long sleeves and she wore a veil on her head. Her feet were bare with yellow roses on each one.

The Lady told Bernadette, “I cannot promise to make you happy in this world, only in the next”. During the 6th apparition Bernadette was told to, “Pray for sinners.” On the 8th apparition, the Virgin said “Penance” three times. The 9th vision, the Blessed Mother asked Bernadette “Drink from the fountain and bathe in it.” Bernadette scratched the ground and drank the muddy waters and ate the grass near it as the Lady asked her to and from here came the miraculous waters. The 13th apparition, the Blessed Mother asked Bernadette to tell the priest that she desired a chapel built and the people should come in a procession. The Lady finally revealed that she was the Immaculate Conception. Soon a chapel that eventually became a basilica and a statue placed on the hollow of the rock where she appeared.

Today, this is one of the most visited apparition sites of the Blessed Virgin Mary where reports of extraordinary healings of every conceivable disease or physical disability has been reported and confirmed by medical doctors. (Elvie Uraya)