The pilgrimage, which is scheduled to take place between the months of September and October, will go through all the Catholic cathedrals in Great Britain.
Newsroom (27/08/2022 09:15 AM Gaudium Press) After visiting the United States, the relics of Saint Bernadette Soubirous will visit England, Scotland and Wales for the first time. The pilgrimage, which is scheduled to take place between September and October, will begin in the Upper Basilica of Lourdes, stopping in all Catholic cathedrals in Great Britain.
Program of the visit of the relics of Saint Bernadette
On September 9, Plymouth Cathedral, located in the southwest of England, will receive the relics. The welcome will be given by choirs formed by students from Catholic schools in the region. Afterwards, visitors and pilgrims from Devon, Cornwall and Dorset will be able to go to the shrine and spend some time in private prayer.
“We are privileged to have Bernadette with us, but actually in less than 24 hours she is physically with us. So what we hope to do is get the children involved because she arrives on Friday. So we have several schools in the city and we are going to ask them to do a welcome liturgy for her that will probably be very beautiful,” said the administrator of Plymouth Cathedral, Canon Mark O’Keeffe.
During September 9 and 10, there will also be a special service at the Cathedral, with an evening candlelight procession starting at 6 pm. Before the departure of the relic, the faithful will be able to attend the celebration of a Solemn Holy Mass followed by the Anointing of the Sick.
Bernadette Effect
According to Canon O’Keeffe, this event will be a unique and special experience for local Catholics, as the visit of the relics will give the faithful the opportunity to feel the “Bernadette effect” in their lives by participating in ceremonies such as a Holy Mass with the anointing of the sick.
Throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, the faithful had little or no opportunity to visit places of pilgrimage, such as the Shrine of Lourdes, to pray for healing, enrichment and renewal. The religious man commented that once “some pilgrims told him that what they loved when they went there [Lourdes] was the fact that everyone is equal. There is no judgment or complaint. Everyone helps each other and smiles. And they said, ‘If only we could live like that all the time.'” (EPC)
Compiled by Angelica Vecchiato