| Triduum of Prayer (9th - 11th February) - Lourdes Anniversary |
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 To mark the 150th Anniversary of the Apparitions at Lourdes the Church in the parish will hold a Triduum of Prayer beginning on 9th February and concluding on 11th February – the Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Lourdes. On that day in 1858 Our Lady first appeared to the young Bernadette Soubirous. The Blessed Virgin appeared a further seventeen times in the French village over the course of the next five months. On the sixteenth such visit the lady finally revealed her identity by telling Bernadette: “I am the Immaculate Conception”.The Church opened a special Jubilee Year on 8th December 2007 to mark 150 years since the remarkable events in Lourdes. The pilgrimage site will host many events over the course of twelve months to give thanks for the graces received from the apparitions. Parishes like our own are also commemorating the anniversary in a special way. These three days of prayer will prepare us to mark the World Day of the Sick on the 11th February. On that day too the parish priest will bless the newly constructed Grotto in the graveyard which has been commissioned as part of the Jubilee celebrations. The Triduum of Prayer consists of the following: Saturday 9th February Holy Mass in the Church of St. Patrick – 10.00am Special reflection on the theme of St. Bernadette Sunday 10th February Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick in the Church of St. John the Baptist – 4.00pm Followed by Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament Monday 11th February Novena Mass in the Church of St. John the Baptist – 7.00pm Followed by a torchlight procession to the graveyard where the new Grotto will be blessed
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