The feast of the Annunciation, 25th March, is not particularly celebrated in Lourdes, unlike 11th February, the anniversary of the first apparition. Yet, when the Lady says her name, she also opens her heart, she says who she is in the eyes of God, who she is for us: the Immaculate Conception, perfectly open to the Love that she radiates.
This year we would like to solemnise the day of 25th March a little more with a more festive mass, and an international rosary at the Grotto. We would like you to be with us in spirit by letting us mention your union with us.
In the sanctuary on 25th march
11.15 am Mass at the Rosary Basilica.
12 noon Angelus for France at the Grotto.
3.30 pm International Rosary at the Grotto, in the presence of the Family of Our Lady of Lourdes.
4.15 pm Vespers in the Immaculate Conception Basilica
Join the family Of Our Lady Of Lourdes
On 22nd August 2016, the very old Archconfraternity of the Immaculate Conception of Our Lady of Lourdes was resurrected as the Family of Our Lady of Lourdes. It means that we can continue to enjoy the fruits of Mary’s meeting with Bernadette, thanks in particular to the sharing of a monthly letter that awakens the vitality of our baptism by giving us a chance to share in Mary’s faith.
Both individuals and groups can join. It is not about additional rituals, but rather providing a Marian home for the whole of our Christian life. It is the light of the Grotto that accompanies us every day. The sign of our membership takes the form of the blue scapular of Mary and Bernadette. In concrete terms, we are also invited to donate a fee of € 30 for three years, which will provide a fund for the celebration of masses for the members of the Family, especially the Pilgrim Mass on Saturdays.
Benefit from an Indulgence
In this Bernadette Year, we asked Rome to confirm that it would allow the indulgences that had been previously granted to the Archconfraternity. The response has come back in the affirmative.
We would especially like to share with all the friends of Lourdes the grace of Mercy which is offered to us by being part of the Family of Our Lady of Lourdes.
You will find below the “Rules” of the Family. You can let us know if you intend to join the prayer on 25th March and would like to join the Family as a group or individually.
Mary asked Bernadette to go and ask the priests to build a chapel in Lourdes. I believe she would be delighted to see these small spiritual groups grow, an oasis of divine tenderness in our harsh world.
2019 – A Bernadette Year
The grace of mercy offered to all the friends of Lourdes
In 2019, the Bernadette year, we would especially like to offer the grace of Mercy to all the friends of Lourdes. Individuals and groups are invited to join the Family of Our Lady of Lourdes.
God, our Father rich in mercy
A pilgrimage to Lourdes is just one step on the path of life. Our entire existence is a pilgrimage to our Heavenly home. A foretaste of this paradise is already offered to us in shared love, the fruit of God’s merciful heart. He came to us as a tiny baby so that we would not be afraid of him, so that we would not be afraid of each other anymore.
In Lourdes, on 25th March, the Lady said her name to Bernadette: “I am the Immaculate Conception”. I am the creature who is completely transparent to the Light: I let the Love of the Saviour who comes to take flesh in me, flow freely. The created and the Creator are one in the womb.
From then on, sin is conquered, death is suspended. And whenever a child is immersed, through baptism, in the life of Jesus, the only Son, the resurrection is at work. Whenever, through the sacrament of Penance, we relive the grace of baptism, we are reborn. And all the consequences of the sin that we continue to drag behind us can be reduced to nothing by the superabundance of God’s gift. His indulgence is unlimited for the prodigal son who returns to him.
When we go to confession, receive communion, and pray for the intentions of the Church and the Pope, at certain special times, we receive a plenary indulgence: we let ourselves be transported into the burning heart of our God. The requirement and the gift of Love.
At Lourdes, we receive an indulgence on a variety of occasions, which are outlined below (Appendix), according to the standards of the Enchiridion Indulgentiarum of 16th July 1999.
The family of Our Lady of Lourdes
At the end of the Jubilee Year of Mercy on 22nd August 2016, the bishop of Tarbes and Lourdes also encouraged a return to a true expression of Mercy. If we join the Family, we can take advantage of a plenary indulgence once a year, choosing from the following occasions: the anniversary of our affiliation, the most important days of the Apparitions (11th February, first apparition; 18th February, the day on which Bernadette was promised the happiness of the other world; 25th February, the day when she was instructed to make an act of penance and the discovery of the spring; and 25th March, when the Lady said her name: “I am the Immaculate Conception”), as well as 8th December and 15th August, and 22nd August, the feast of the Queenship of Mary, the day when the Association was revived.
In 2019, the Bernadette year, we would especially like to offer the grace of Mercy to all the friends of Lourdes. Individuals and groups are invited to join the Family of Our Lady of Lourdes. In doing so, we continue to live in the grace of the pilgrimage, a little like Sister Bernadette, the last person to be miraculously cured, who was healed at home, while she relived the adoration in which she had participated in the underground Basilica eight days previously.
The Lord is with us on our daily journeys. We should not miss the chance to draw closer to him. The light of Lourdes wants to reach every heart.
For any information, please contact famillendl@lourdes-france.com
General plenary indulgences applicable to Lourdes
Plenary indulgence is granted to the faithful who visit the Blessed Sacrament to worship for at least half an hour (EI 1986, conc 3).
Plenary indulgence is granted to the faithful who perform the pious exercise of the Stations of the Cross (EI 1986, conc 63).
Plenary indulgence is given to the faithful who recite the Marian Rosary (EI 1986, Conc 48). Reciting only five decades is sufficient, but they must be recited without interruption.
A plenary indulgence is granted to the faithful who visit a basilica by piously reciting the Our Father and the Creed:
a) on the solemnity of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul;
b) the day of the solemnity of the Basilicas’ dedications:
Basilica of the Immaculate Conception: 8th December,
Basilica of the Rosary: 7th October,
Basilica of St. Pius X: 21st August;
(c) 2nd August, the date of the indulgence of the Portiuncula *;
d) once in the year, on a day chosen by the faithful.
* Every 2nd August, on the occasion of the liturgical feast of Our Lady of the Angels celebrated in the Franciscan family, all the faithful can obtain a particular plenary indulgence, the so-called indulgence of the Portiuncula. It can be obtained from 1st August at noon until 2nd August at midnight (“Concessiones” No. 33, §1 – 2 °, 3 ° and 5 °). However, it is no longer possible to obtain several plenary indulgences on the same day: but it is always possible to obtain, in addition to a plenary indulgence, several partial indulgences on the same day.
A plenary indulgence is granted to the faithful who visit the sanctuary by piously reciting the Our Father and the Creed:
a) the day of the solemnity of Our Lady of Lourdes, 11th February
b) every time they participate in a shared pilgrimage.
1 av. Monseigneur Théas
