LOURDES, France (OSV News) — Pope Leo XIV led tens of thousands of people in a candlelight rosary procession Sept. 27 in the Marian shrine of Lourdes, saying that he had come as “a pilgrim among pilgrims.”
“We are gathered this evening to respond to the request that Our Lady addressed to the priests through St. Bernadette: ‘People should come here in procession.’ How moving it is to see the faithful, from one generation to the next, respond with love and trust to the tender invitation of the Virgin Mary,” Pope Leo said.
“I give thanks to the Lord that I, too, may respond this evening to the call of our mother, becoming a pilgrim among pilgrims,” he added.
‘The light of hope’
Holding a large candle in his right hand and a rosary in his left, Pope Leo processed slowly behind an illuminated statue of the Virgin Mary through the crowd of pilgrims holding candles, as the five decades of the glorious mysteries of rosary were prayed in multiple languages.
As the “Ave Maria” Lourdes hymn was sung between mysteries, all of the pilgrims in the square in front of the Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary lifted their candles high in the air, creating a sea of lights.
“The light that guides us and draws us onward is the light of hope, which never abandons us even as we journey through this life — a life often marked by trials, yet already filled with the joy of knowing ourselves to be children of God, loved and saved by Jesus,” the pope said.
“Those who are sick are privileged witnesses to this transfiguration of our lives through faith and love of God and neighbor.”
‘Joy amidst suffering’
Many pilgrims in wheelchairs participated in the candlelit rosary, lifting up their candles and singing hymns.
Speaking in French, Pope Leo reflected on “the miracle of finding serenity and joy amidst suffering.”
He encouraged the sick to keep St. Paul’s words in Romans 8:18 constantly in their hearts, “The sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory about to be revealed to us.”
The procession began in the Lourdes Grotto of Massabielle, where the Virgin Mary appeared to a poor and uneducated 14-year-old Bernadette Soubirous 18 times in 1858.
Candlelight rosary processions are a frequent part of the pilgrimage experience in Lourdes throughout the year. Pope Leo noted that Pope Pius XII wrote in 1957, “No one has ever seen such a procession of suffering in one spot on earth, never such radiance of peace, serenity and joy.”
Seeking Mary’s intercession
Prayer intentions collected during the day were presented to the Virgin Mary, and she was asked to intercede for peace.
“Dear brothers and sisters, pilgrims and all who are ill, you have come from France and throughout the world to take part in this fervent and peaceful procession of light. Let us bring our dearest and most urgent intentions, and present them to Our Lady,” the pope said.
“As we contemplate her in her Immaculate Conception, may joy and invincible hope rise within our hearts,” he said. “Clothed with the sun, with the moon beneath her feet and crowned with stars, she is glorious and powerful; yet she is also humble and very close to us. She is the mother of Jesus, and she is our mother.”
Earlier in the day, Pope Leo met with Catholic bishops, celebrated Mass, met with staff and sick at a Lourdes hospitality center, and met privately with victims of clergy sexual abuse. His trip was scheduled to conclude Sept. 28 with a visit to Metz in northeastern France.
Courtney Mares is Vatican editor for OSV News. Follow her on X @catholicourtney.
