Our Lady of Lourdes represents the healing power of faith.
The Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes celebrates the Marian apparition who first appeared to Bernadette Soubirous, a peasant girl, in Lourdes, France on February 11, 1858.
Our Lady of Lourdes
The 14-year old reported that a lady spoke to her from a cave while she was gathering firewood. After several meetings, the apparition told Bernadette to dig and drink. Her digging released a spring whose water is said to have led to miraculous cures.
The statue that is currently in the Grotto was created by French sculptor Joseph-Hugues Fabish in 1864. She is one of the most popular Marion images. She is often placed in gardens.
As with many Marian apparitions, the Catholic Church didn’t want to have anything to do with it at first. Popular veneration and the confirmation of miracles led to church permission and then a canonical coronation in 1876.
Bernadette Soubirous was declared a Catholic Saint in 1933.
The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes is one of the world’s most popular pilgrimage sites. Lourdes water from the spring is widely sought for healing.
In New York City
New York City is blessed with two sanctuaries dedicated to Our Lady of Lourdes.
Church of Notre Dame (NYC)
405 West 114th St, New York, NY 10025
(between Amsterdam and Morningside Drive)
Morningside Heights, Manhattan
Our Lady of Lourdes Church
463 West 142nd St, New York, NY 10031
(between Amsterdam and Convent Ave)
Hamilton Heights