Pope Leo XIV arrived this Saturday, September 26, in Lourdes, the second stop of his apostolic journey to France, and visited the Grotto of the Apparitions at Massabielle, where he entrusted the country to the Virgin Mary and prayed for families, vocations, the sick, and leaders. In his prayer, the Pope specifically asked that Christian families be “generously open to life” and that France have leaders willing to serve the common good.
His arrival in Lourdes concluded an intense day that had begun in the morning in Paris with a visit to Maison Bakhita and a meeting with catechumens and neophytes at the Catholic Institute of Paris, and whose central event was the Mass celebrated before some 700,000 faithful in the Place de la Concorde.
France, entrusted to the Virgin
Before the Grotto of Massabielle, Pope Leo XIV was received by the Bishop of Tarbes and Lourdes, Bishop Jean-Marc Micas, and by the rector of the shrine, Father Michel Daubanes. The Pope first remained for a few moments in silent prayer before the image of the Virgin Mary.
His prayer was marked by an explicit intercession for France. Pope Leo XIV asked Our Lady to obtain for the French people the gift of fraternal concord and that the country might build a harmonious society that banishes violence and hatred.
The Pontiff also prayed that every person might work, found a family, and live their life to the end with tranquility and serenity, and asked that the poorest and most disadvantaged always find support.
“Wise and generous leaders” at the service of the common good
The prayer included a specific petition for those who govern France. Pope Leo XIV asked the Virgin that the country have “wise and generous” leaders, capable of facing challenges, willing to make personal sacrifices, and oriented toward serving the common good.
The Pope also asked that France remain at peace within the concert of nations and that it make its voice heard in defense of fundamental human rights and world peace, rejecting the logic of war.
This petition extended some of the issues raised by the Pontiff during the first day of his visit, when at the Élysée Palace he defended the right to life and warned against euthanasia, surrogacy, and genetic manipulation.
Families open to life and new vocations
Pope Leo XIV then entrusted to the Virgin the People of God who are on pilgrimage in France and asked for a renewal of faith and fervor among Christian families, so that they might live daily from the presence of Jesus Christ and find in Him the grace and support needed in the face of difficulties.
In that context, he made one of the most significant requests of the prayer: that families be “generously open to life” and that God raise up new vocations within them, especially to the priesthood and religious life.
The Pope also asked that the Church in France be able to show, in a particular way to young people, “the luminous path of the Gospel” to contribute to building a just and fraternal society.
The sick before the spring of Massabielle
The final part of the prayer was dedicated to personal intentions, to the sick and those who suffer, as well as to those who accompany them and who come to Lourdes to seek strength and healing at the spring of Massabielle.
Pope Leo XIV also entrusted his loved ones and the deceased to the Virgin and asked her to remove the obstacles that still separate people from Christ and that her Son might reign in every heart.
The Golden Rose at the feet of the Virgin
After a few moments of silence, the Pope approached the rock of the grotto and touched it. The rector of the shrine then offered him a glass of water from the spring of Massabielle, from which he drank, and gave him a candle that Pope Leo XIV placed in the candelabrum before reciting his prayer.
At the end, the Pontiff placed a Golden Rose at the feet of the image of Our Lady of Lourdes, recited the Our Father, and imparted the blessing. Before leaving the shrine, he greeted the chaplains and then went to the episcopal residence, where he dined privately.
Pope Leo XIV’s arrival marked the first visit of a Pontiff to Lourdes since Benedict XVI’s pilgrimage in 2008. The shrine had reached full capacity weeks earlier, with some 150,000 pilgrims registered to participate in the weekend’s events.
Pope Leo XIV continues his visit to Lourdes this Sunday
The journey continues this Sunday, September 27, in Lourdes. Pope Leo XIV is scheduled to meet at 9:00 a.m. with the bishops of the French Episcopal Conference in the Saint Bernadette Auditorium and, at 11:00 a.m., to preside over Holy Mass in the meadow of the Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes, followed by the recitation of the Angelus.
In the afternoon, the Pope will meet at 3:30 p.m. with the workers and the sick of Accueil Notre-Dame and, afterward, will hold a private meeting with contemplative religious sisters at the Carmel of Lourdes. The day will conclude at 9:00 p.m. with the recitation of the Holy Rosary and the torchlight procession.
PRAYER OF POPE LEO XIV AT THE GROTTO OF MASSABIELLE
Our Lady of Lourdes, the Immaculate Conception, in this blessed place where you spoke, with such sweetness and tenderness, to Saint Bernadette, humble daughter of the people of France, to convey to the world a luminous message of prayer, conversion, and hope, we come to you with confidence; for you are the Mother whom Jesus has given us and you are attentive to all our needs.
We ask you, Our Lady, for France, of which you are Patroness and which for so many centuries you have surrounded with your protection. Obtain for its people the gift of fraternal concord. May it build a harmonious society, banishing all violence and all hatred, allowing each one to work, found a family, and live their life to the end with tranquility and serenity. May the most unfortunate and the poorest always be supported. Obtain for France wise and generous leaders, willing to sacrifice themselves, capable of facing challenges, and eager to serve the common good. May they keep it at peace in the concert of nations. May they make their voice heard to promote the defense of fundamental human rights, as well as peace in the world, rejecting forever the logic of war.
Holy Virgin Mary, we present to you the People of God who are on pilgrimage in this country that you have so marked with your closeness. Renew the faith and fervor of Christian families, so dear to your heart, so that they may live each day from the presence of Jesus, from his grace, and from his support in the difficulties they face. May they be generously open to life, and may God raise up vocations within them, especially priestly and religious. Grant to your Church in France that it may show, especially to the youngest, the luminous path of the Gospel to build the just and fraternal society to which they aspire.
Finally, most loving Mother, we present to you our most urgent personal intentions, in particular those of the sick and those who suffer, as well as those of all who accompany them, who have come to obtain strength and healing at the spring of Massabielle. We entrust to you our loved ones and our dear departed. Remove, we beg you, all the obstacles that still separate us from your beloved Son, and make him reign in every heart.
Amen.