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Events for Saturday 11th February 2023
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St Scholastica
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Little is known about her except that she was a virgin and religious foundress. It is estimated that she died between 543 and 547. She was the sister of St. Benedict. St. Gregory wrote in his dialogues that "She could do more because she loved more." St. Scholastica is known as the Patroness of Children who have Convulsions.
 

Our Lady of Lourdes
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This feast celebrates the tenderness of God's Mother, the Virgin Mary, for all of us on earth, and focuses on an important aspect - her Immaculate Conception - that Mary, the future mother of the Messiah, at her own birth, was preserved free of original sin.

In 1858, Our Lady appeared to fourteen-year-old Bernadette Soubirous as she and two companions gathered firewood. Bernadette suffered much but Our Lady appeared to her seventeen times. During the sixteenth visit, Our Lady identified herself as the Immaculate Conception. After four years of investigation, the Church finally stated that Bernadette's claims were credible, and that Our Lady had appeared to her.

Mary Immaculate at Lourdes
The Lourdes Story
The Miracles of Lourdes
Lourdes Documentary
Lourdes Hospitality 125th Anniversary

On 11th February we honour Our Lady of Lourdes in our Mass. This is the 157th anniversary of her 1st Apparition at Massabielle in Lourdes, France. It is World Day of the Sick and an appropriate occasion for the priest to bless the sick at Mass.

Prayer to our Lady of Lourdes

O holy Virgin.
In the midst of your days of glory,
do not forget the sorrow of this earth.
Cast a merciful glance upon those who are suffering,
struggling against difficulties,
with their lips constantly pressed against life's bitter cup.

Have pity on those who love each other and are separated.

Have pity on our rebellious hearts.

Have pity on our weak faith.

Have pity on those we love.

Have pity on those who weep, on those who pray,
on those who fear.

Grant hope and peace to all. Amen.

(Abbé Perreyve)

World Day of the Sick 2010
Litany of Our Lady of Lourdes
Live Link to Lourdes and Timetable

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 

World Day of the Sick
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World Day of the Sick is a Catholic Church awareness day, or observance, on February 11, aimed at praying and sharing, sacrificing one’s suffering for the welfare of the church, and urging everyone to see the face of Christ in his or her ailing brother or sister. The day falls on the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes, and it is an important occasion for individuals in the Catholic health ministry to reflect on caring for those who are sick as well as those who care for them.

 

HISTORY OF WORLD DAY OF THE SICK

In 1992, Pope John Paul II established the day to urge people to pray for individuals who are ill and their caretakers. The pope showed signs of Parkinson’s disease in 1991, but it wasn’t verified until 2001, therefore, it’s notable that he opted to establish the World Day of the Sick barely a year after his diagnosis. In his apostolic letter “Salvifici Doloris”, the pope wrote extensively on the subject of suffering and considered that it has always been a redeeming process through Christ.

On February 11, 1993, the first World Day of the Sick was observed. Our Lady of Lourdes, a term referring to the Virgin Mary in honor of apparitions alleged to have been seen in and around Lourdes, France, by a little girl named Bernadette Soubirous, is also celebrated on February 11. Bernadette was recognized as a saint by the Catholic Church a few years later.

Because numerous pilgrims and tourists to Lourdes, France, claimed to have been healed at the Marian Sanctuary through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin, he chose the commemoration of Our Lady of Lourdes as the day of the observance. The pope also paid homage to the Harissa sanctuary in Lebanon.

The World Day of the Sick had a particular significance in 2005 because the ailing pope died on April 2 of that year. As he lay dying in St. Peter’s Square in Rome, a large crowd assembled to pray for him.

On this day in 2013, Pope Benedict XVI announced his resignation, citing his poor health as the cause for his departure. On World Day of the Sick, people all across the world take the opportunity to pray for the sick and those who labor tirelessly to alleviate their pain. Faith-based organizations commemorate this day by providing medicines, food, and spiritual guidance to the sick.