Holy Saviour Roman Catholic Church,
Nelson Lancashire

There were many masses, services and events that we as a Diocese were involved in. These included a daily mass (which were usually held in St. Bernadette's Chapel in the Domaine); a service of Anointing of the Sick for the sick and elderly pilgrims; a Reconciliation service for all the Diocese's pilgrims; a shared Mass with another English Diocese at the Grotto (which this year comprised of 2 Dioceses: the Diocese of Shrewsbury and the Diocese of Arundel and Brighton), a youth service in the 'Cathedral in the Trees' in the Cité Saint Pierre (a district in the hills above Lourdes), the Blessed Sacrament Procession and Service in the Underground Basilica (the Basilica of St. Pius X), the Torchlight Processions and the Upper and Lower Stations of the Cross services.

The Torchlight Processions are one of the main highlights of Lourdes, in the way that they are especially moving, prayerful, inspiring and impressive. They take place in Rosary Square at night and we as Salford Diocese were involved the Torchlight Processions twice. Thousands of sick and able-bodied pilgrims from all over the world are involved in the Torchlight Processions which creates as sense of being part of the universal community of God. During our first Torchlight procession, I was involved with several other Salford youth volunteers like myself assisting with the wheelchair transport of some of the elderly/sick pilgrims from our Diocese in processing with them around Rosary Square and the Esplanade, which enhanced my sense of involvement with these pilgrims as I was sharing in the very prayerful experience of the Torchlight Processions and praying and singing the most glorious hymns of adoration to Mary with them and the thousands of other international pilgrims. The beauty and splendour of Rosary Square and of the Domaine is very striking during the Torchlight Processions as everyone holds lanterns, which makes for a very impressive sight against the night sky and enhances the profundity of the occasion.

I found particularly that being part of the daily masses and services created a great sense of community within our diocesan group, due to the knowledge of being part of an 800+ strong group who were all together simultaneously as one family, far from our home in the North-West of England, in the unique and holy place of Lourdes. I found that this knowledge helped to strengthen my relationship with my group and others in our Salford Diocesan group, as we were all there in Lourdes to help the sick and to be part of sharing in our experience of Lourdes. It brought forth the feeling of knowing that this was a great and joyful opportunity to celebrate and to experience fully, so that when we did return home, the experience and good memories of Lourdes would live on in my daily life at home. I believe that it was by doing this that I am able to re-live my experience of Lourdes even after returning from the pilgrimage, as it is a very inspirational place to be and the presence of holiness is especially perceptible.

There are many personal effects that being in Lourdes evolves, but I particularly found the effects of several aspects of Lourdes to be very calming, which in turn helped me to feel at peace with myself and other people, and to deepen my self understanding and an objective understanding of some of my own personal life issues. Private prayer and reflection at the Grotto gave the opportunity for the most profound calming effects, especially when I visited as part of my group late at night and by myself in the early morning - 2 parts of the day when the Grotto is most beautiful, thought-provoking and prayer-inspiring. This prayerful time allowed me to gain a closer relationship with Mary and God, and to ask and to receive the answers to my own prayer petitions. Spending time alone by the Statue of the Crowned Virgin also allowed me to strengthen my relationship with Mary, as her spiritual presence at this Statue can be felt to be very close. Spending individual quiet time in prayer at the candle stands is also a very emotive time, as one's prayers not only become visible and tangible in the form of a lit and burning candle, but thousands of other people's prayers in this form are also present here, which is quite a powerful and poignant sight. It is similar to the effect of seeing the thousands of lit lanterns during the Torchlight Processions.

Similarly to the last day of my first pilgrimage to Lourdes in summer 2006, I felt a sense of sadness to be leaving Lourdes, as the whole experience, from assisting the sick and elderly, to being involved in our Diocesan masses and services, to spending time in personal prayer and to socialising with other youth volunteers, is extremely fulfilling and enjoyable. I spent some time in the early morning of our last morning in the Domaine, and with the basilicas looking spectacular in the early morning sunlight, I found it quite a personal and poignant way of saying goodbye.

Lourdes really does have an endearing effect that creates an inner sense of wanting to return there, and I hope to do so in summer 2008, when it will be the 150th Anniversary of Mary's Apparitions to St. Bernadette in Lourdes and so the celebrations then will be even more magnificent than what I have experienced so far during my 2 pilgrimages to Lourdes.