The Message of the Immaculate Virgin Mary at Lourdes

Faith is like sight, it can be sharp and clear but it can also be short-sided and deficient. One of the graces to ask from Christ during a pilgrimage to Lourdes is to sharpen our sight in our need to be cured and above all to widen our field of vision. (...) When we have received the gift of faith, not only do we see things differently than before, but most of all, we cannot go on living as we did previously. We start to understand better the advice of Saint Paul to the Christians of Ephesus, "You were in darkness once, but now you are in the light of the Lord; behave like children of the light, for the effects of the light are seen in complete goodness and uprightness and truth. Try to discover what the Lord wants of you; take no part in futile works of darkness" (Eph 5: 8-10). The message of the Apostle is clear: it means that we must live according to the grace of our baptism. It is also the message of the Immaculate Virgin Mary at Lourdes. Mary had but one wish: to allow all pilgrims to experience the same grace as the man who was born blind so that we could say with him: "I went there, and when I washed myself I regained my sight" (Jn 9:11).