Day 7 - Homeward Bound

Last night in Lourdes we had the honour of leading the nightly Marian Torchlight Procession; this was a perfect was to end our pilgrimage as we gathered for one final time as a whole pilgrimage family to process through the Sanctuary with the Statue of the Blessed Virgin and to give thanks to God and Our Lady for a wonderful pilgrimage week.

This morning our pilgrims awoke and began to make their way home to Manchester, or in some cases, onwards to other areas of France for an extra break before returning home. Pilgrims on our first flight were collected at 6.30am and even at this early hour and after a busy and tiring week our fabulous volunteers were there to assist with luggage, transfer to the coaches and were also on hand at the airport. The efficiency and organisation used is fantastic to see and it helps to make the journey home much less stressful and more enjoyable for our pilgrims.

At noon those at the heart of our pilgrimage, our Acceuil pilgrims, were flown home accompanied by our Medical & Nursing Team and hotel pilgrims on the same flight to Manchester. Our Medical & Nursing team work tirelessly throughout the week to ensure the comfort of our sick pilgrims and at times are needed to respond to situations in difficult locations and conditions. Their commitment and care for our pilgrims is obvious in all that they do and they are so much appreciated by our sick pilgrims and the pilgrimage family as a whole.

Our advance party of volunteers will remain in Lourdes until tomorrow morning and today assisted with the packing and storage of equipment and essential supplies needed throughout our pilgrimage week, as well as cleaning and tidying the first floor of the Hotel Solitude which is transformed during our week to meet the needs and convenience of our sick pilgrims. Our pilgrimage van was also loaded today ready to hit the road first thing in the morning with our own 'Max and Paddy' at the wheel as they bring pilgrimage equipment and supplies home to Salford, we wish them a safe journey. 

Our pilgrimage for 2016 has come to an end, but the friendships we have made this week and in previous years will remain for many years to come. We are a pilgrimage family and that sense of community and family values has been especially evident this week in our time with Our Lady. The compliments we have received from other pilgrimages in Lourdes, who have observed or joined our services, have all said how lovely and welcoming a group we are and have been in awe at the compassion and care shown to our pilgrims by our volunteers.

We give thanks to Our Lady for calling us to worship in Lourdes, for her intercession and for the blessings bestowed upon us this week during our 84th Salford Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes. We thank her for allowing us to sit with her awhile in the Grotto and thank her for making our pilgrimage one of peace, reconciliation and prayer. 

We thank you for following our week in Lourdes through this blog and hope that it has been a good reminder of our time here; if you have not been with us on pilgrimage this week, we hope we have provided a good insight as to who we are and what makes our pilgrimage so special. 

In a few weeks time we will begin preparations for the 85th Salford Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes, which will take place from Friday 28th July - Thursday 3rd August 2017. We warmly invite you to join our pilgrimage family next year in Lourdes as we gather once again to give praise to the 'beautiful lady'.  It only seems fitting to leave you with these words from Saint Bernadette:

'If one dream should fall and break into a thousand pieces... never be afraid to pick one of those pieces up and begin again. That's the beauty of being alive... We can always start all over again. Enjoy God's amazing opportunities bestowed on us. Have faith in Him always...'

Our Lady of Lourdes, pray for us.
Saint Bernadette, pray for us.

Stay with us, Lord, on our journey.

Day 6 of our pilgrimage

Despite having had our social evening for the whole pilgrimage last night, all of our volunteers were present and correct and ready for duty this morning on this the hottest day of our pilgrimage so far. Temperatures reached a scorching 29 degrees this afternoon but there wasn’t many complaints as our pilgrims enjoyed the sunny weather for our last full day here in Lourdes as a pilgrimage family.

A beautiful day in Lourdes

Our programme for the day began with the service of Reconciliation in which all members of the clergy are available to hear confession for our pilgrims and volunteers. Once again our musicians and choir provided a beautiful ambience as pilgrims took part in the service. Many pilgrims find this a very emotional moment in their pilgrimage and a good opportunity to offload any worries or concerns that they have carried with them here to Lourdes.

This afternoon was our Closing Mass. As Bishop John remarked in his opening to the Mass, it seems only yesterday that we gathered in Salford Cathedral for our pre-departure Mass and here we were 10 days later at the twilight of our pilgrimage and preparing for home. For the only time this week we gathered in the stunning Rosary Basilica which provided a beautiful setting to celebrate our wonderful time together here in Lourdes.

Bishop John during the Closing Mass

During his homily Bishop John referred to Pope Francis’ analogy of the church as a ‘field hospital after a battle’ and he continued that perhaps Lourdes is ‘Our Lady’s field hospital after a battle’. We come here together and help to heal each other’s wounds, to work out our priorities and to support each other through our time here. We can be certain that Our Lady will hear our petitions, will pray for us and will help us in our times of need, just as the healing waters of the spring heal those in pain.

The end of Mass saw the presentation of service awards for volunteers from our pilgrimage who have completed 3, 5, 10 and in two cases, 25 years service! An amazing commitment and our gratitude and congratulations goes to those who received awards

Thank you really doesn’t seem enough to say to our President of the Salford Hospitalité, Brian Hampshire, who after 52 amazing years of dedication and hard work to the organisation has decided to step down as President. Already a holder of the Bene Morreti medal bestowed upon those who provide great service to the church by the Holy Father, Brain was presented with gifts and a standing ovation by all those in attendance. Brain has his own song in which the lyrics to the chorus of the  famous Proclaimers song ‘500 Miles’ are replaced with ‘ Brian Hampshire, Brian Hampshire, Brian Hampshire. . . . ‘ and we’re sure those lyrics will echo around the streets of Lourdes tonight.

Presentation to Brian Hampshire, retiring as President of the Salford Hospitalité

And so with heavy hearts we prepare to leave this special place. We thank Our Lady for her blessings bestowed on us this week. We thank our pilgrims and volunteers for all that they give so freely to our pilgrimage and we look forward to gathering here again in Lourdes next Summer. 

Pilgrims on our first flight of the day have drawn the short straw with a 6.30am pick up from their hotels, but shortly after this two other flights will take our pilgrims home to sunny Manchester.

This evening we will officially end our pilgrimage in a very fitting way as we lead the nightly Marian Torchlight Procession and our volunteers proudly carry the statue of the ‘Beautfiul Lady’ through the Sanctuary as we sing ‘Ave, Ave, Ave Maria!’

Our Lady of Lourdes, pray for us.

Saint Bernadette, pray for us.

Stay with us, Lord, on our journey.

Day 5 of our Pilgrimage

Last night we were pleased to welcome Bishop John and Father Steven safely to Lourdes after a long and tiring journey from Krakow. This morning Bishop John was straight into the pilgrimage by celebrating our special Mass of Mercy. This year the Sanctuaries of Lourdes have requested that each pilgrimage visiting Lourdes in this Holy Year of Mercy wash the feet of a group of their pilgrims to signify the Mercy of God. During our Mass 12 pilgrims from each different area of our family had their feet washed by Bishop John who just before this, in his homily, spoke of his time in Krakow and echoed Pope Francis’ call for young people to put down their phones and video games and to make history, positive history and change for our world which at this time is very much in need of help. Our young pilgrims were called to be part of that change and to make their contribution to history.

Bishop John washes the feet of our pilgrims.

The weather here in Lourdes today has returned to beautiful sunshine and with it intense heat. this afternoon we made our passage through the Grotto as a whole pilgrimage with umbrellas for shade and plenty of water available to ensure our pilgrims were protected from the heat. This was quite a spectacle as our large Salford Pilgrimage banner was carried proudly to the step of the alter and placed front and centre whilst our pilgrims passed through, to be greeted by Bishop John upon their exit from the Grotto.

Our pilgrims gather to pass through the Grotto

Our volunteers did a fantastic job of looking after pilgrims in the intense heat

Pilgrims pass through the Grotto

Directly after the passage through the Grotto our accueil pilgrims made their way over the river to the lower Stations of the Cross. These are beautiful white marble statues standing over 8 feet tall and have been made very accessible for wheelchairs and pilgrims with mobility issues. Other pilgrims chose to take part in the upper stations which is a physically challenging way of the cross along a hillside overlooking the Sanctuary. The upper stations are life size portrayals of each Station, cast in bronze with the crucifix visible above the treeline from down in the Sanctuary. 

Following the Stations our pilgrims took an opportunity to take on some refreshments and have a rest before preparing for our social evening for the whole pilgrimage which is taking place tonight in the Hotel Solitude. This is a wonderful occasion which is inclusive of every person on the pilgirmage. Our pilgrims and volunteers wear fancy dress and are provided with entertainment ranging from Irish Dancing to singing and music. It is a fantastic celebration of our blessed pilgrimage so far in Lourdes and a chance for pilgrims and volunteers to let their hair down after a busy week. Whilst there may be the odd sore head in the morning and sales of bottled water may take a sharp rise in the local shops, our volunteers never let us down and will be on hand for our Reconciliation Service which begins a busy day for us tomorrow. 

The inscription of the words Our Lady spoke to Bernadette:

'I am the Immaculate Conception.'

We will continue to keep you all in our prayers here and rest assured that Our Lady will intercede for your intentions.

Our Lady of Lourdes, pray for us.

Saint Bernadette, pray for us.

Stay with us, Lord, on our journey.

Day 4 of our Pilgrimage

What better way is there to begin a day in Lourdes than with Mass at the Grotto. This Mass is the highlight of our pilgrimage week. We are blessed to have the opportunity to celebrate in the special place in which the Blessed Virgin appeared to Bernadette. We shared our Mass this morning with the pilgrimage from the Diocese of Hexham & Newcastle. Presiding was Bishop Terence who began by reminding us that whilst we are at the Mass we should remember to place our petitions with Our Lady and to pray for those who are not with us on pilgrimage but have asked us to pray for them during this week.

Our Grotto Mass this morning.

Just over two weeks ago Father Michael Deas was ordained Priest at Salford Cathedral and just over three weeks ago Rev. Mark Paver was ordained Deacon in Rome. We are delighted to have them both with us in Lourdes this week and Father Michael provided us with an excellent homily that focused on the Blessed Virgin, the Immaculate Conception and his ‘geeky’ understanding of the translation of the Gospel we heard today, from it’s Greek origin. 

 Bishop Brain during our Grotto Mass.

This afternoon was free time for our pilgrims and many chose to take part on one of our two planned excursions; one to the beautiful town of Gavarnie, and one to the relaxing setting of Lac du Lourdes, a picturesque lake in the Pyrenees. 

This pilgrimage is a very special one for our Children & Families Group who are celebrating their tenth anniversary this year. They spent the afternoon at the waterpark on the outskirts of Lourdes which is an excellent facility and a huge hit for both children and parents! 

Our CAF Group celebrate their 10th anniversary this year.

To end our programme for the day or young volunteers have been leading a night time reflection and liturgy on the Prairie which is a large grassed area across the river from the Grotto and a fantastic place to relax and to gaze across at the beautiful Grotto from. 

We are delighted that Bishop John and Father Steven Parkinson have arrived safely here in Lourdes tonight after a long journey from World Youth Day in Krakow. Bishop John will preside for the remainder of our pilgrimage and will begin by celebrating our Mass of Mercy which takes place in the morning. 

We hope that you are enjoying our blog thus far and it was wonderful to know that many of you joined in our Grotto Mass this morning from home via the Sanctuary’s YouTube channel. Rest assured that you are all in our prayers and thoughts here this week.

The statue of Our Lady of Lourdes stands in the exact spot 

where the apparitions took place.

Our Lady of Lourdes, pray for us.

Saint Bernadette, pray for us.

Stay with us, Lord, on our journey.