Tuesday, February 11, 2025: “Our Lady of Lourdes.”
Jn 2:1-11: Jesus at Cana and Mary was there….
There is a place of worship dedicated to ‘Our Lady’ in many countries (1). This is where one can experience a stronger presence of the mother of Jesus. It is recognised by the Church but does not add anything to the creed, and there are no new revelations.
I believe in Mary’s presence in these places, just as she was at the Cana wedding. This text is taken from the Johannine tradition, the community in which Mary is known to have spent her last days. At Cana, Mary is the one who sees the difficulties of the moment; she is present but does not act. She turns to her son, for he alone is the way, the light, our friend. Mary is, for me, the one who “walks with us”; she is a presence that each of us experiences in our own way . . .
People go to “Our Lady of Lourdes”. We remember that Bernadette Soubirous came to Bartrès in 1857 to regain her health and, at her request, to prepare for her first communion, the incredible encounter with Jesus. The village parish priest often visited La Salette, so Bernadette asked to return to Lourdes to continue her preparation when he left the parish. There, she had a mystical encounter that she would describe in a few words, as was the custom at the time. She would keep everything else to herself; she would say no more, even if the Pope asked her to.
I have been going to Lourdes with the hospitaliers and pilgrims from the Pau area for a few years now. Many go there to deepen their faith, and others with a wide range of motivations, but Mary welcomes them all: some go just to touch the rock or drink from the spring. We have around a hundred young people in their final year of school every year to help with serving at table and looking after the more vulnerable. Some of them are not even baptised but are there with their joy, doubts, and hopes.
Bernadette went to Nevers, where she was finally able to live in peace and listen to Mary repeating to her the words of the Gospel: “Do whatever he tells you.” When a sister told her she could not pray or meditate, Bernadette would reply: “Transport yourself to the Garden of Olives (2) or to the foot of the cross. Remain there, and our Lord will speak to you. Listen to him.”
(1) Notre Dame de Valfleury: near my village where, according to an old tradition, a shepherd found a statue of Mary under a broom flower during the winter. Back in my grandparents’ day, people would walk there yearly to be with Mary. The Virgin’s chair was there, and mothers would place their firstborn children there.
(2) In Jerusalem, the W. F. have a garden at the top of the Mount of Olives; I loved going there often during my stays, sitting in silence facing the city.
From: w.w.w. georgespaquetmonevangile: p.8 « Marie »
By: Georges Pa quet, M.Afr.,