Lourdes and the Rosary
Fr. Roger Charest, SMM
Fr. Charest is the original Queen of All Hearts Managing Editor.
Lourdes and the Rosary
I recently returned from a pilgrimage to Lourdes for the thirty – fourth time.
If you were to ask what attracts me most to that blessed Shrine, I would have to answer; Prayer, the spirit of prayer that pervades the Shrine area from early morning till late into the night.
And what is special about prayer over there? I would have to answer that, second only to the Mass and the Eucharistic adoration and Processions, it is the recitation of the Rosary – especially remarkable during the evening Candlelight Processions
when the Rosary is recited in at least 10 languages, a different language for each Hail Mary of the decade.
Now, when ten or twenty thousand or more people pray the Rosary together each evening, as Pilgrims from all parts of the world, you have a feeling that the Church is alive and well. You know that Our Lady is there praying with them as she prayed with Bernadette in 1858. As Bernadette herself described in the first apparition, “The Lady prayed with me.”
Why is the Rosary so Popular at Lourdes?
And why is the Rosary so popular at Lourdes? Because, the Mother of God prayed it with Bernadette. In fact, in each of the 18 apparitions, Our Lady appeared with rosary beads in her hands while Bernadette prayed her rosary. Six of these apparitions were taken up solely with the praying of the rosary by the young visionary, as were the greater part of the other twelve. While Bernadette prayed the prayers of petition, the Blessed Virgin silently fingered her own beads. At the Gloria, she joined in.
The fact that Bernadette prayed the rosary is not as significant as the fact that the Lady encouraged her to pray. Strangely enough, however, at the very first Apparition, Bernadette was in such a state of shock that she was unable to make the sign of the Cross. Here is how she describes it; “I put my hand in my pocket and I found my rosary beads. I wanted to make the sign of the Cross. My hand couldn’t reach my forehead. It just fell. Then the shock grew stronger.
My hand was shaking. However, I didn’t let it disturb me. The Lady took the rosary she was holding in her hands and made the sign of the Cross. So I tried a second time. This time I succeeded. As soon as I had made the sign of the Cross the state of shock I had experienced left me.”
Notice how the Lady didn’t seem to want Bernadette to make the sign of the Cross until she herself had made it. Yes, the Lady wanted to show Bernadette how to make the sign of the Cross: slowly, reverently, prayerfully. It has been said that this slow, reverent, graceful action became a distinctive feature of the apparitions, . . .
Return to The Queen: Articles
Our Lady Wanted to Show How to Make The Sign of the Cross
Notice how the Lady didn’t seem to want Bernadette to make the sign of the Cross until she herself had made it. Yes, the Lady wanted to show Bernadette how to make the sign of the Cross: slowly, reverently, prayerfully. It has been said that this slow, reverent, graceful action became a distinctive feature of the apparitions, as did the slow deliberate recitation of the rosary prayers which greatly impressed the crowds who accompanied Bernadette at the Grotto during the Apparitions.
It is common knowledge, as her biographers tell us, that even as a nun Bernadette never mastered the art of formal meditation.
The prayer that Our Lady taught her and to which she was faithful until her dying day, the prayer that made her the Saint that she is today, is the Rosary.
The Rosary and Penance
The first message Our Lady gave to the world at Lourdes is that of Prayer and Penance. “Penance, Penance, Penance – Pray for the conversion of sinners”. Penance and conversion through the Sacrament of Reconciliation along with individual as well as communal prayers, particularly the Rosary, are what make Lourdes what it is today. Centered on Christ in the Eucharist (witness the countless Masses and the daily Eucharistic Pr0cession at 4:30 each afternoon), the pilgrim to Lourdes will most likely to be seen, day in and day out, walking through the Shrine grounds with rosary in hand and prayer on his / her lips.
Need I explain further why I am so attracted to Lourdes? After all, I am a Montfort Father, a spiritual son of one of the Church’s greatest Apostles of the Rosary, If you haven’t yet read St. Louis de Montfort’s book, Secret of the Rosary, you may not fully understand why the Rotary is such an important prayer not only at Lourdes, but in Church around the world. No wonder our Holy Father, Pope John Paul II, once said: “The Rosary is my favorite prayer. A marvelous prayer! Marvelous in its simplicity and its depth”. (Oct. 29, 1978).
Yes, the Rosary is an important part of my prayer-life. That is undoubtedly one of the reasons I feel irresistibly drawn to Lourdes, the place Our Lady selected to teach Bernadette how to pray.
