The Baths at Lourdes
History of the Baths
In 1858, Mary appeared to Bernadette Soubirous, an uneducated French peasant girl looking for firewood in the woods. During a series of visits between February and July of that year, Our Lady revealed to Bernadette a spring and invited all to prayer and penance and to wash in the waters. Our Lady also imparted to Bernadette a message for priests: “Go, tell the priests to come here in procession and to build a chapel here.” (Source: Order of Malta America)
During the Diocesan pilgrimage to Lourdes, pilgrims make their way to the baths. During the ninth of St Bernadette’s eighteen visions at Lourdes, she was told by Our Lady to wash in, and drink water from a freshwater spring revealed to her in the grotto. This was in 1858, and the same spring to this day is a central focus for pilgrims to Lourdes. The spring is visible behind a glass screen in the grotto, and supplies water to baths and taps in which pilgrims wash and drink.
Photo Credit: Shutterstock
The enduring flow from the same ground source gives significance to the act of washing and drinking in the same water source as Bernadette. The water is a vehicle for faith, but also for grace, intercession and the possibility of the miraculous.
Immersion in the bath is a sacramental experience that intertwines the natural world with the spiritual. God has always touched our human lives through elements of the natural world—for example, the Bread and Wine, Moses and the Red Sea, the Loaves and Fishes and the Wedding Feast at Cana. Through the water at Lourdes, the Blessed Mother connects us to her and to the love of her Son Jesus Christ. (Source: Order of Malta)
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In 1862, seven cures were authenticated as miracles by the Church authorities. In 1883 a Medical Bureau was established to test the authenticity of miracle claims.
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The First Recognized Miracle of Lourdes: Catherine Latapie
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The Youngest Recipient of a Miracle at Lourdes: Justin Bouhort
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The Oldest Recipient of a Miracle at Lourdes: Sister Bernadette Moriau
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The most recent miracle - the 72nd miracle - proclaimed by the Sanctuary of our Lady of Lourdes relates to Antonia Raco, who was cured from Primary Lateral Sclerosis (PLS) during her pilgrimage to Lourdes in 2009.
What Happens at the Baths
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First Stop: The Waiting Area
The waiting area is outside, covered by a wooden awning. Pilgrims gather in the quiet of their hearts, some sing, and some pray the Rosary. Here, the pilgrims prayerfully consider the intentions they want to bring into the bath. It may be for themselves, their physical, emotional or spiritual healing, or their pilgrimage to Lourdes may be for someone whom they carry with them to the healing waters of Lourdes.
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Second Stop: The Changing Room
One by one, pilgrims are directed to enter the building for the baths. They are guided to one of the stalls with curtains. Here the pilgrim undresses in preparation for the baths.​
Third Stop: Stepping into the Bath
The bath is concealed behind a curtain and pilgrims are brought individually into the bath area itself. Behind the curatin is a stone bath with fresh, circulating water. Pilgrims are wrapped in a thin, white cloth that has been dipped in the bath water. They are then led to the top of the steps and with an attendant on either side they guide the pilgrim down the steps into the water. Here, the pilgrim pauses, surrendering and placing themselves in God’s presence before being renewed in the spirit of God’s love and mercy that comes from the healing waters.
Still Credit: Bruce Feiler
Prayer
Here, the pilgrim will pray a "Hail Mary" and an "Our Father". Then, in a profound moment of quiet prayer, each pilgrim lifts up the prayer intentions they brought with them to the waters. Then they make the sign of the cross.
Immersion
With the assitance of the attendants, each pilgrim steps down until they are knee deep in the water, walking towards the statue of Our Lady at the far end of the bath. The attendants gently immerse the pilgrim into the water up to their neck. Not everyone chooses to be immersed. They may have the water poured on their hands and wash their face.
​​​​Drinking
When the pilgrim emerges from the water, they will have an opportunity to drink from a pitcher of water taken directly from the spring unearthed by St. Bernadette near the grotto.
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Leaving the Bath
Once leaving the bath, most pilgrims find that they dry off immediately. The speed with which one dries off is a beautiful part of the sacred mystery, of the joy and peace so many experience at the baths. Once dressed, pilgrims exit the baths and rejoin their fellow pilgrims.
Photo Credit: Order of Malta America