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Encyclopedia > Our Lady of Lourdes

The apparitions of Our Lady of Lourdes began when Bernadette Soubirous, a 14-year old peasant girl from Lourdes, when questioned by her mother, admitted that she had seen a "lady" in the cave of Massabielle, about a mile from the town, on 11 February 1858, while she was gathering firewood with her sister and a friend.[1] Similar appearances of the "lady" took place on seventeen further occasions that year. Bernadette Soubirous I am the Immaculate Conception Saint Bernadette, née Marie-Bernarde Soubirous (January 7, 1844 - April 16, 1879), was a shepherd girl from the town of Lourdes in Occitania, now in southern France. ... Lourdes is a town situated in the Southwest of the Hautes-Pyrénées department, lying in the first Pyrenean foothills. ... February 11 is the 42nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1858 (MDCCCLVIII) is a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Sunday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ...

Statue of Our Lady of Lourdes
Statue of Our Lady of Lourdes

Catholics consider Bernadette Soubirous a saint. The first appearance of the "Lady" reported by Bernadette was on 11 February while she was gathering firewood with her sister and a friend. The others were on February 14, 18-21, 23-25, 27, 28, March 1-4, 25, April 7, and July 16. Download high resolution version (1920x2560, 2459 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Download high resolution version (1920x2560, 2459 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Bernadette Soubirous I am the Immaculate Conception Saint Bernadette, née Marie-Bernarde Soubirous (January 7, 1844 - April 16, 1879), was a shepherd girl from the town of Lourdes in Occitania, now in southern France. ... February 11 is the 42nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ...

Contents

The 1st appearance (11 February)

"The first time I went to the Grotto, was Thursday, 11th February, 1858. I went to gather firewood with two other little girls (Toinette, her sister, and their school friend Jeanne Abadie). When we got to the mill (of Savy), I asked the other two if they would like to see where the water of the mill joins the Gave. They said 'Yes.' From there we followed the canal. When we arrived there (at the foot of the rock of Massabielle) we found ourselves before a grotto. As they could go no further, my two companions prepared to cross the water lying before their path; so I found myself alone on the other side. They crossed the water; they started to cry. I asked them why and they told me that the water was cold. I begged them to help me throw a few rocks into the water so that I could cross without taking my stockings off. They replied that I could do as they had done. Then I went a bit further to see if I could cross without taking my stockings off, but without success. "I came back towards the grotto and started taking off my stockings. I had hardly taken off the first stocking when I heard a sound like a gust of wind. Then I turned my head towards the meadow. I saw the trees quite still: I went on taking off my stockings. I heard the same sound again. As I raised my head to look at the grotto, I saw a lady dressed in white, wearing a white dress, a blue girdle and a yellow rose on each foot, the same color as the chain of her rosary; the beads of the rosary were white.


"The Lady made a sign for me to approach; but I was seized with fear, and I did not dare, thinking that I was faced with an illusion. I rubbed my eyes, but in vain. I looked again, and I could still see the same Lady. Then I put my hand into my pocket, and took my rosary. I wanted to make the sign of the cross, but in vain; I could not raise my hand to my forehead, it kept on dropping. Then a violent impression took hold of me more strongly, but I did not go.


"The Lady took the rosary that she held in her hands and she made the sign of the cross. Then I commenced not to be afraid. I took my rosary again; I was able to make the sign of the cross; from that moment I felt perfectly undisturbed in mind. I knelt down and said my rosary, seeing this Lady always before my eyes. The Vision slipped the beads of her rosary between her fingers, but she did not move her lips. When I had said my rosary the Lady made a sign for me to approach, but I did not dare. I stayed in the same place. Then, all of a sudden, she disappeared. I started to remove the other stocking to cross the shallow water near the grotto so as to join my companions. And we went away. As we returned, I asked my companions if they had seen anything. 'No,' they replied. 'And what about you? Did you see anything?' 'Oh, no, if you have seen nothing, neither have I.'


"I thought I had been mistaken. But as we went, all the way, they kept asking me what I had seen. I did not want to tell them. Seeing that they kept on asking I decided to tell them, on condition that they would tell nobody. They promised not to tell. They said that I must never go there again, nor would they, thinking that it was someone who would harm us. I said no. As soon as they arrived home they hastened to say that I had seen a Lady dressed in white. That was the first time." [2]


On realising that she alone had seen the apparition, and not her companions, she asked her sister Toinette not to tell anyone what had happened. Toinette, however, was unable to keep silent, and told their mother, Louise Soubirous. Both girls received a beating, and Bernadette was forbidden by her mother from returning to the Grotto again.[3]


The 2nd appearance (14 February)

"The second time was the following Sunday. I went back because I felt myself interiorly impelled. My mother had forbidden me to go. After High Mass, the two other girls and myself went to ask my mother again. She did not want to let us go, she said that she was afraid that I should fall in the water; she was afraid that I would not be back for Vespers. I promised that I would. Then she gave me permission to go. Vespers is the evening prayer service in the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox liturgies of the canonical hours. ...


"I went to the Parish Church to get a little bottle of holy water, to throw over the Vision, if I were to see her at the grotto. When we arrived, we all took our rosaries and we knelt down to say them. I had hardly finished the first decade when I saw the same Lady. Then I started to throw holy water in her direction, and at the same time I said that if she came from God she was to stay, but if not, she must go. She started to smile, and bowed; and the more I sprinkled her with holy water, the more she smiled and bowed her head and the more I saw her make signs. Then I was seized with fright and I hurried to sprinkle her with holy water until the bottle was empty. Then I went on saying my rosary. When I had finished it she disappeared and we came back to Vespers. This was the second time." [2] St. ... Our Lady of Lourdes - Mary appearing at Lourdes with Rosary Beads The Rosary (from Latin rosarium, crown of roses), an important and traditional devotion of the Catholic Church consisting of a set of prayer beads and a system of set prayers. ...


Troubled by the notion that the apparition might represent an evil spirit, Bernadette used the holy water as a test. A further reassuring sign was the apparition's beautiful bare feet: demonic apparitions (even while in human form) were believed to have cloven hooves or animal paws.[4] A cloven-hoof is a type of hoof that is found on some animals. ...


The 3rd appearance (18 February)

The Apparition did not speak until the third appearance, and therefore its identity was a matter of considerable speculation. Pious villagers Jeanne-Marie Milhet and Antionette Peyret, on hearing Bernadette's description of the apparition, considered it may have been a revenant, a soul returning from purgatory. Although outwith Catholic doctrine, the concept of the revenant was deeply routed in Pyrenean superstition; further, revenants frequently manifested to young children. The previous October, the head of the local chapter of the Children of Mary, a woman named Elisa Latapie, had died. Revenants rarely spoke, but communicated their messages in writing, and so Milhet and Peyrey furnished Bernadette with paper, a pen and an inkpot to take with her, in case the apparition should make use of them.[5] In the Middle Ages, revenants were legendary animate corpses which rose from the grave to haunt the living. ... The soul, according to many religious and philosophical traditions, is the self-aware essence unique to a particular living being. ... Illustration for Dantes Purgatorio (18), by Gustave Doré. Dante described purgatory as having seven terraces, each to purge a different sin. ... The Sodality of Our Lady (also known as the Sodality of the Blessed Virgin Mary (in Latin, ) is an association of Catholics founded in 1563 in the Roman College of the Society of Jesus. ...


"The third time was the following Thursday. The Lady only spoke to me the third time. I went to the grotto with a few matured people, who advised me to take paper and ink, and to ask her, if she had anything to say to me, to have the goodness to put it on paper. I said these words to the Lady. She smiled and said that it was not necessary for her to write what she had to say to me, but asked if I would do her the favour of coming for a fortnight. I told her that I would. She told me also that she did not promise to make me happy in this world, but in the next."[2] A fortnight is a unit of time equal to two weeks: that is 14 days, or literally 14 nights. ...


Although she spoke in Occitan, the local patois which Bernadette (whose French was poor) used, the apparition used remarkably formal language in her request: "Would you have the goodness to come here for fifteen days?" (in Occitan: "Boulet aoue ra gracia de bié aci penden quinze dias?"; in French:"Voulez-vous me faire la grâce de venir ici pendant quinze jours?") This significance of this politeness was not lost on the observers. As a penniless peasant girl, it would be very unusual for anyone to adopt this formal form of address when speaking to Bernadette.[6]


The 4th appearance (19 February)

Armed with a lighted candle for protection, Bernadette came to the grotto. This originated the custom of carrying lighted candles to the grotto. Eight people were present including Bernadette's mother and two of her aunts, one of whom, Aunt Bernarde, was her godmother and the most influential member of her mother's family.[7] Bernadette reported that the lady asked her to leave her candle there. She said "It belongs to my aunt, I'll have to ask her; but if she agrees, I will." A close-up image of a candle showing the wick and the various regions of the flame. ...


The 5th appearance (20 February)

Thirty people were present. Bernadette reported later that the lady had taught her a prayer, which she said every day of her life, but never wrote down or repeated to anyone. By this time, the news was spreading to other towns, and many people assumed that Bernadette's lady was the Virgin Mary, although Bernadette herself seemed content not to try to establish her identity. The term Virgin Mary has several different meanings: Mary, the mother of Jesus, the historical and multi-denominational concept of Mary Blessed Virgin Mary, the Roman Catholic theological and doctrinal concept of Mary Marian apparitions shrines to the Virgin Mary Virgin Mary in Islam, the Islamic theological and doctrinal concept...


The 6th appearance (21 February)

Over 100 people were present, and Bernadette was afterwards interrogated by Dominique Jacomet, the Police Commissioner. Her father, François Soubirous, eventually assured the commissioner that the affair would cease.[8]


The 7th appearance (23 February)

About 150 people were present. Jean-Baptiste Estrade (a tax inspector), Duffo (a court official), and the officers from the garrison were present. Bernadette said later that the lady had told her a secret, which was for her alone, and was never revealed to anyone.


The 8th appearance (24 February)

The message of the "lady" was "Penance! Penance! Penance! Pray to God for sinners. Kiss the ground as an act of penance for sinners!" About 250 people were present.


The 9th appearance (25 February)

"(The Lady) told me that I should go and drink at the fountain and wash myself. Seeing no fountain I went to drink at the Gave. She said it was not there; she pointed with her finger that I was to go in under the rock. I went, and I found a puddle of water which was more like mud, and the quantity was so small that I could hardly gather a little in the hollow of my hand. Nevertheless I obeyed, and started scratching the ground; after doing that I was able to take some. The water was so dirty that three times I threw it away. The fourth time I was able to drink it. She made me eat grass growing in the same place where I had drunk; once only; I do not know why. Then the Vision disappeared and I went home.". [9] Bernadette was interrogated again.


The spring began to flow a day later. A natural spring on Mackinac Island in Michigan. ...


The 10th appearance (27 February)

About 800 people were present.


The 11th appearance (28 February)

Over one thousand people were present. Bernadette was questioned by Judge Ribes afterwards.


The 12th appearance (1 March)

There were almost fifteen hundred people present. Catherine Latapie reported that she bathed her paralyzed arm in the spring, and instantaneously regained full movement. This was the first of the scientifically unattributable events to take place.


The 13th appearance (2 March)

The "lady" commanded Bernadette: "Go, tell the priests to come here in procession and to build a chapel here."[10] [Another source says: "Go and tell the priest to build a chapel here and to have people come in procession."] [9] Accompanied by her two aunts, Bernadette went to ask Fr. Peyramale, who called Bernadette a liar and forbade her to go to the grotto, after which she was dismissed. Bernadette was determined, and came again with one of the priest's friends to ask again. After Bernadette was thoroughly questioned before the parish clergy and dismissed, the parish priests could not agree on what course to take. Peyramale decided to go to Tarbes to visit the bishop. The bishop determined that Peyramale should remain away from the grotto. A chapel is a private church, usually small and often attached to a larger institution such as a college, a hospital, a palace, or a prison. ... Abbé Dominique Peyramale, (1811-1877) was a Catholic priest in the town of Lourdes in France during the apparitions of Our Lady of Lourdes to the peasant girl Bernadette Soubirous in 1858. ... Location within France Tarbes is a French town and commune, in the département of Hautes-Pyrénées, of which it is the préfecture. ...


The 14th appearance (3 March)

Previously, Father Peyramale had told Bernadette that the requests for the procession and chapel could not be fulfilled unless and until the lady's name was known. On this occasion Bernadette asked for the lady's name, but, according to Bernadette's testimony, the lady merely bowed a little and smiled.


The 15th appearance (4 March)

About eight thousand people were present. "The third time I went to see M. le Curé, to tell him that a Lady had ordered me to go and say to the priests that they were to have a chapel built there, he looked at me for a moment, and then he said to me in a rather gruff tone, 'Who is this lady?' I answered that I did not know. Then he commissioned me to ask her name and to come and tell him. The next day when I arrived at the grotto I recited my rosary and then asked her, from M. le Curé what her name was, but all she did was to smile. When I got back I went to M. le Curé to tell him that I discharged his commission, and her only response was her smile; then he said she was laughing at me and that I would do well not to go to her again. But, I could not help going."[9] Our Lady of Lourdes - Mary appearing at Lourdes with Rosary beads. ...


The 16th appearance (25 March)

Our Lady of Lourdes - Mary appearing at Lourdes with Rosary Beads. The words on her halo are: 'Je suis l'Immaculée conception' (I am the Immaculate Conception)[11]. These are the words that Bernadette reported that Mary said to her in the 16th apparition.

"I went every day for a fortnight, and each day I asked her who she was–and this petition always made her smile. After the fortnight I asked her three times consecutively. She always smiled. At last I tried for the fourth time. She stopped smiling. With her arms down, she raised her eyes to heaven and then, folding her hands over her breast she said, 'I am the Immaculate Conception.' Then I went back to M. le Curé to tell him that she had said she was the Immaculate Conception, and he asked was I absolutely certain. I said yes, and so as not to forget the words, I had repeated them all the way home." [12] generally available marian image - no copyright issues File links The following pages link to this file: Rosary Blessed Virgin Mary Categories: Images with unknown source ... generally available marian image - no copyright issues File links The following pages link to this file: Rosary Blessed Virgin Mary Categories: Images with unknown source ... Lourdes is a town situated in the Southwest of the Hautes-Pyrénées department, lying in the first Pyrenean foothills. ... Our Lady of Lourdes - Mary appearing at Lourdes with Rosary beads. ... Mary, mother of Jesus as the Immaculate Conception. ... Bernadette Soubirous I am the Immaculate Conception Saint Bernadette, née Marie-Bernarde Soubirous (January 7, 1844 - April 16, 1879), was a shepherd girl from the town of Lourdes in Occitania, now in southern France. ... Mary, mother of Jesus as the Immaculate Conception. ...


The 17th appearance (7 April)

Dr. Pierre Romaine Dozous, the town physician, originally watched the apparitions from a skeptical viewpoint. He believed Bernadette, whom he knew well, was in her right mind aside from the apparitions; he planned to write a medical article discussing the idea that one can have illusions or hallucinations without being insane. A hallucination is a false sensory perception in the absence of an external stimulus, as distinct from an illusion, which is a misperception of an external stimulus. ...


He reported: "Bernadette seemed to be even more absorbed than usual in the Appearance upon which her gaze was riveted. I witnessed, as did also every one else there present, the fact which I am about to narrate. She was on her knees saying with fervent devotion the prayers of her Rosary which she held in her left hand while in her right was a large blessed candle, alight. The child was just beginning to make the usual ascent on her knees when suddenly she stopped and, her right hand joining her left, the flame of the big candle passed between the fingers of the latter. Though fanned by a fairly strong breeze, the flame produced no effect upon the skin which it was touching. Astonished at this strange fact, I forbade anyone there to interfere, and taking my watch in my hand, I studied the phenomenon attentively for a quarter of an hour. At the end of this time Bernadette, still in her ecstasy, advanced to the upper part of the Grotto, separating her hands. The flame thus ceased to touch her left hand. Bernadette finished her prayer and the splendour of the transfiguration left her face. She rose and was about to quit the Grotto when I asked her to show me her left hand. I examined it most carefully, but could not find the least trace of burning anywhere upon it. I then asked the person who was holding the candle to light it again and give it to me. I put it several times in succession under Bernadette's left hand but she drew it away quickly, saying 'You are burning me!'. I record this fact just as I have seen it without attempting to explain it. Many persons who were present at the time can confirm what I have said."[12]


On June 8, 1858, the mayor of Lourdes barricaded the grotto and stationed guards to prevent public access. Visitors were fined for kneeling near the grotto or talking about the grotto.[13]


The 18th appearance (16 July)

This was the last. Because the grotto was barricaded by the local government, Bernadette knelt outside the fence by the riverbank..[13] "I thought I was at the Grotto, at the same distance as I was the other times. All I saw was Our Lady ... She was more beautiful than ever."[12]


A second analysis of the water, which had been commissioned by the mayor of Lourdes and conducted by a professor in Toulouse, determined that the water was potable and that it contained the following: oxygen, nitrogen, carbonic acid, carbonates of lime and magnesia, a trace of carbonate of iron, an alkaline carbonate or silicate, chlorides of potassium and sodium, traces of sulphates of potassium and soda, traces of ammonia, and traces of iodine. [13] New city flag (Occitan cross) Traditional coat of arms Motto: (Occitan: For Toulouse, always more) Location Coordinates Time Zone CET (GMT +1) Administration Country France Region Midi-Pyrénées Department Haute-Garonne (31) Intercommunality Community of Agglomeration of Greater Toulouse Mayor Jean-Luc Moudenc  (UMP) (since 2004) City Statistics... Drinking water This article focuses on water as we experience it every day. ... General Name, Symbol, Number nitrogen, N, 7 Chemical series nonmetals Group, Period, Block 15, 2, p Appearance colorless gas Standard atomic weight 14. ... Carbonic acid (ancient name acid of air or aerial acid) has the formula H2CO3. ... Carbonate is an anion with a charge of -2 and an empirical formula of CO32-. An aqueous solution of carbon dioxide contains a minute amount of H2CO3, called carbonic acid, which dissociates to form hydrogen ions and carbonate ions. ... General Name, Symbol, Number iron, Fe, 26 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 8, 4, d Appearance lustrous metallic with a grayish tinge Standard atomic weight 55. ... The chloride ion is formed when the element chlorine picks up one electron to form the negatively charged ion Cl−. The salts of hydrochloric acid HCl are also called chlorides. ... General Name, Symbol, Number potassium, K, 19 Chemical series alkali metals Group, Period, Block 1, 4, s Appearance silvery white Standard atomic weight 39. ... General Name, Symbol, Number sodium, Na, 11 Chemical series alkali metals Group, Period, Block 1, 3, s Appearance silvery white Atomic mass 22. ... Sulfate is the IUPAC name for the SO42- ion, consisting of a central sulfur atom single bonded to four tetrahedrally oriented oxygen atoms. ... Ammonia is a compound with the formula NH3. ... General Name, Symbol, Number iodine, I, 53 Chemical series halogens Group, Period, Block 17, 5, p Appearance violet-dark gray, lustrous Standard atomic weight 126. ...


The grotto reopened to the public in October of 1858, by order of Emperor Louis Napoleon III.[13] 1858 (MDCCCLVIII) is a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Sunday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ... The neutrality of this article is disputed. ... Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte (April 20, 1808 - January 9, 1873) was the son of King Louis Bonaparte and Queen Hortense de Beauharnais; both monarchs of the French puppet state, the Kingdom of Holland. ...


Aftermath

Bernadette received no further apparations after the 18th, and did not feel any desire to visit the Grotto afterwards, but the people kept on visiting. Lourdes has since grown to be the greatest Marian shrine of the Catholic church. Lourdes is a town situated in the Southwest of the Hautes-Pyrénées department, lying in the first Pyrenean foothills. ... A Virgin Mary shrine is a shrine marking an apparition or other miracle ascribed to the Blessed Virgin Mary. ... The name Catholic Church can mean a visible organization that refers to itself as Catholic, or the invisible Christian Church, viz. ...


Commentary on the apparitions

Several specific details of the apparitions are worthy of closer attention. Bernadette described the apparition as uo petito damizelo ("a young girl") of about twelve years old. Bernadette insisted that the apparition was no taller than herself. At 1.40m tall, Bernadette was diminutive even by the standards of other poorly-nourished children.[14]


Bernadette described that the apparition was dressed in a flowing white robe, with a blue sash around her waist. This was the uniform of a religious group called the Children of Mary, which, on account of her poverty, Bernadette was not permitted to join (although she was admitted after the apparitions).[15] The Sodality of Our Lady (also known as the Sodality of the Blessed Virgin Mary (in Latin, ) is an association of Catholics founded in 1563 in the Roman College of the Society of Jesus. ...


The statue which currently stands in the niche within the grotto of Massabielle (illustrated above) was created by the Lyonnais sculptor Joseph Fabisch in 1864. Although it has become an iconographic symbol of Our Lady of Lourdes, it depicts a figure which is not only older and taller than Bernadette's description, but also more in keeping with orthodox and traditional representations of the Virgin Mary. On seeing the statue, Bernadette was profoundly disappointed with this representation of her vision. Lyons), see Lyons (disambiguation). ...


Historical context of the apparitions

Far from being unique, Bernadette's visions took place against a cultural backdrop of apparitions and other supernatural events which bear some resemblance to Bernadette's experiences. It is likely that Bernadette would have known of, and may even have been influenced by, such events, which were woven into the fabric of her society.


For example, in nearby Bétharram, only a few kilometres from Lourdes, some shepherds guarding their flocks in the mountains observed a vision of a ray of light which guided them to the discovery of a statue of the Virgin Mary. Two attempts were made to remove the statue to a more prominent position; each time it disappeared and returned to its original location, at which a small chapel was built for it.[16]


More importantly, in the early sixteenth century, a twelve year old shepherdess called Anglèze de Sagazan received a vision of the Virgin Mary near the spring at Garaison (part of the commune of Monléon-Magnoac), somewhat further away. Anglèze's story is strikingly similar to that of Bernadette: she was a pious but illiterate and poorly-educated girl, extremely impoverished, who spoke only in local patois, but successfully convinced authorities that her vision was genuine and persuaded them to obey the instructions of her apparitions. Like Bernadette, she was the only one who could see the apparition (others could apparently hear it). However, the apparition at Garaison's supernatural powers tended towards the miraculous provision of food, rather than healing the sick. The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. ... Monléon-Magnoac is a commune of the Hautes-Pyrénées département in southwestern France. ... Patois, although without a formal definition in linguistics, can be used to describe a language considered as nonstandard. ...


Mid-nineteenth century commentators noted the parallels between the events at Massabielle and Garaison, but, interestingly, interpreted the similarities as proof of the divine nature of Bernadette's claims.[17] At the time of Bernadette, Garaison was a noted centre of pilgrimage and Marian devotion.


There are also several similarities between the apparition at La Salette, near Grenoble, and Lourdes. La Salette is many hundreds of kilometres from Lourdes, and the events at La Salette predate those in Lourdes by 11 years. However, the lady of La Salette was large and maternal, not petite and girlish, and had a darker, more threatening series of messages. It is not certain if Bernadette was aware of the events at La Salette.[18] La Salette is a mountaintop village near Grenoble, France. ... Grenoble (Arpitan: Grasanòbol) is a city and commune in south-east France, situated at the foot of the Alps, at the confluence of the Drac into the Isère River. ...


The Lourdes Medical Bureau

See main article: Lourdes Medical Bureau The Lourdes Medical Bureau is a medical organisation based in Lourdes in France. ...


To ensure claims of cures were examined properly and to protect the town from fraudulent claims of miracles, the Lourdes Medical Bureau was established. Approximately 7000 people have sought to have their case confirmed as a "miracle," of which only 67 have been declared a scientifically inexplicable "miracle" by both the Bureau and the Catholic Church. [19]


Pilgrimages

The pilgrimage site is visited by millions of Catholics each year. Various unusual occurrences are often reported to take place, not only subsequent to bathing in or drinking the water of the Lourdes Spring, but also during the daily Eucharistic procession. See Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes for more information. There is another Lourdes with a different pronunciation, see Lourdes, Brazil Our Lady of Lourdes Basilica Lourdes (Lorda in Occitan) is a town in the Hautes-Pyrénées département in France. ... For other uses, see Eucharist (disambiguation). ... There is another Lourdes with a different pronunciation, see Lourdes, Brazil Our Lady of Lourdes Basilica Lourdes (Lorda in Occitan) is a town in the Hautes-Pyrénées département in France. ...


The Catholic Church's Position

On January 18, 1862, Bishop Laurence, the Bishop of Tarbes, gave the solemn declaration: "We are inspired by the Commission comprising wise, holy, learned and experienced priests who questioned the child, studied the facts, examined everything and weighed all the evidence. We have also called on science, and we remain convinced that the Apparitions are supernatural and divine, and that by consequence, what Bernadette saw was the Most Blessed Virgin. Our convictions are based on the testimony of Bernadette, but above all on the things that have happened, things which can be nothing other than divine intervention". [10]


Because the apparitions are private revelation and not public revelation, Roman Catholics are not required to believe them, nor does it add any additional material to the truths of the Catholic Church as expressed in public revelation. In Roman Catholic belief, God chooses whom He wants cured, and whom He does not, and by what means. Bernadette said, "One must have faith and pray, the water will have no virtue without faith." Revelation is an uncovering or disclosure via communication from the divine of something that has been partially or wholly hidden or unknown. ... The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ...


Sites Dedicated to Our Lady of Lourdes

Ain Ebel (Arabic عين إبل) is a village located in south of Lebanon. ... Drawing made for the 1934 HABS Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church is a Roman Catholic parish church of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis located in Minneapolis, Minnesota in the United States. ... Acton is the name of several places, people and organizations: // Places England Acton, Cheshire Acton, Dorset Acton, Staffordshire Acton, Shropshire Acton, Worcestershire Acton, Suffolk Acton, London Of these, the London Acton is the largest. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... Gales Ferry refers both to a village in Connecticut and to a complex of buildings within that village at the site of the ferry which gave the community its name. ... It has been suggested that this article be split into multiple articles. ...

Notes

  1. ^ Catholic Online: Apparitions of Our Lady of Lourdes First Apparition
  2. ^ a b c Catholic Pilgrims: Apparitions at Lourdes
  3. ^ Ruth Harris, Lourdes: Body and Spirit in the Secular Age, Penguin Books, 1999, p. 4.
  4. ^ Ruth Harris, Lourdes: Body and Spirit in the Secular Age, Penguin Books, 1999, p. 57.
  5. ^ Ruth Harris, Lourdes: Body and Spirit in the Secular Age, Penguin Books, 1999, p. 59.
  6. ^ Ruth Harris, Lourdes: Body and Spirit in the Secular Age, Penguin Books, 1999, pp. 5, 59.
  7. ^ Ruth Harris, Lourdes: Body and Spirit in the Secular Age, Penguin Books, 1999, p. 5.
  8. ^ Catholic Online: Apparitions of Our Lady of Lourdes, Sixth Apparition
  9. ^ a b c Catholic Pilgrims: The fortnight
  10. ^ a b Lourdes France: The encounters with the Blessed Virgin Mary
  11. ^ University of Notre Dame: A Cave of Candles: The Story behind the Notre Dame Grotto. Retrived on September 24, 2006.
  12. ^ a b c Catholic Pilgrims: I am the Immaculate Conception
  13. ^ a b c d http://www.nd.edu/~wcawley/corson/lourdes4.htm
  14. ^ Ruth Harris, Lourdes: Body and Spirit in the Secular Age, Penguin Books, 1999, p. 72.
  15. ^ Ruth Harris, Lourdes: Body and Spirit in the Secular Age, Penguin Books, 1999, p. 43.
  16. ^ Ruth Harris, Lourdes: Body and Spirit in the Secular Age, Penguin Books, 1999, p. 39.
  17. ^ Ruth Harris, Lourdes: Body and Spirit in the Secular Age, Penguin Books, 1999, p. 41.
  18. ^ Ruth Harris, Lourdes: Body and Spirit in the Secular Age, Penguin Books, 1999, p. 60.
  19. ^ Where Scientists are looking for God Article filed 1/16/2002 in the Telegraph, accessed October 29, 2006

See also

Lourdes is a town situated in the Southwest of the Hautes-Pyrénées department, lying in the first Pyrenean foothills. ... Apparition of The Virgin to St Bernard by Filippino Lippi (1486) Oil on panel, 210 x 195 cm Church of Badia, Florence Marian apparitions are events in which the Virgin Mary is purported to have supernaturally appeared to one or more persons, typically Catholics, in various settings. ...

External links


  Results from FactBites:
 
Lourdes - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (371 words)
Lourdes (Lorda in Occitan) is a town in the Hautes-Pyrénées département in France.
Our Lady of Lourdes is a church and school outside of Stayton, Oregon named in honor of the Lourdes apparition.
Lourdes Ciccone-Leon, the daughter of Madonna and Carlos Leon.
Our Lady of Lourdes - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (3446 words)
Bernadette Soubirous, a 14-year old peasant girl from Lourdes, reported that she had seen a "lady" on 11 February 1858, while she was gathering firewood with her sister and a friend.
As I raised my head to look at the grotto, I saw a Lady dressed in white, wearing a white dress, a blue girdle and a yellow rose on each foot, the same color as the chain of her rosary; the beads of the rosary were white.
The "lady" commanded Bernadette: "Go, tell the priests to come here in procession and to build a chapel here."[5] [Another source says: "Go and tell the priest to build a chapel here and to have people come in procession."][6] Accompanied by her two aunts, Bernadette went to ask Fr.
  More results at FactBites »


 

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