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Dr Williams to preach at Lourdes Archbishop gives Lourdes sermon
(about 8 hours later)
The archbishop of Canterbury is marking a historic trip to the Roman Catholic pilgrimage site of Lourdes by preaching at an international Mass. The Archbishop of Canterbury has given a sermon at Lourdes, saying the Roman Catholic pilgrimage site can inspire people to spread the Christian faith.
Dr Rowan Williams is participating in 150th anniversary celebrations at the shrine in the French Pyrenees. Dr Rowan Williams told an international Mass at the shrine in France to pray for "the overshadowing strength of the Spirit to carry Jesus wherever we go".
The archbishop is among a group of Church of England bishops, clergy and laity making the pilgrimage. He is among a group of Anglican representatives taking part in 150th anniversary celebrations at the shrine.
Each year, millions of Catholics visit the holy site where a peasant girl said she saw apparitions of the Virgin Mary. A peasant girl said she saw apparitions of the Virgin Mary there in 1858.
Organisers of the anniversary celebrations said that an average of 20,000 pilgrims a day have been visiting the shrine in the foothills of the Pyrenees this year. Millions of Catholics every year visit the holy site where the visions were claimed by Bernadette Soubirous, who was later made a saint.
LOURDES AND ST BERNADETTE On 11 February, 1858, a vision of the Virgin Mary appeared to 14-year-old Bernadette SoubirousThe apparition, in a grotto at the rock of Massabielle, was of a woman in white, with a blue sashBernadette said she witnessed 18 apparitions of the Virgin Mary between 11 February and 16 JulyDespite initial scepticism, the local Bishop declared her accounts to be true in 1862Bernadette joined a convent where she lived until her death in 1879.She was canonised in 1933 Source: Roman Catholic Church 'Renewed and surprised'
Dr Williams was invited to preach at the International Mass by the bishop of Tarbes and Lourdes, Jacques Perrier. In his sermon, Dr Williams said that 150 years ago the people of Lourdes "knew all they thought they needed to know about the Mother of God".
The service is being celebrated by Cardinal Walter Kasper, president of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity. He said: "They needed to be surprised by this inarticulate, powerless, marginal teenager who had leapt up in the joy of recognition to meet Mary as her mother, her sister, bearer of her Lord and Redeemer.
Eight million visitors are expected to visit Lourdes in its 150th anniversary year, including a large number of ill or disabled people. "Our prayer here must be that, renewed and surprised in this holy place, we may be given the overshadowing strength of the Spirit to carry Jesus wherever we go, in the hope that joy will leap from heart to heart in all our human encounters.
"And that we may also be given courage to look and listen for that joy in our own depths when the clarity of the good news seems far away and the sky is cloudy."
LOURDES AND ST BERNADETTE On 11 February, 1858, a vision of the Virgin Mary appeared to 14-year-old Bernadette SoubirousThe apparition, in a grotto at the rock of Massabielle, was of a woman in white, with a blue sashBernadette said she witnessed 18 apparitions of the Virgin Mary between 11 February and 16 JulyDespite initial scepticism, the local bishop declared her accounts to be true in 1862Bernadette joined a convent where she lived until her death in 1879She was canonised in 1933 Source: Roman Catholic Church
Organisers of the anniversary celebrations say that an average of 20,000 pilgrims a day have been visiting the shrine in the foothills of the Pyrenees this year.
A total of eight million visitors are expected throughout the year, including a large number of ill or disabled people.
Many believe the water of a spring, in the grotto where the visions were seen, has curative powers.Many believe the water of a spring, in the grotto where the visions were seen, has curative powers.
The Catholic Church recognises 67 miracles as having occurred at the site.The Catholic Church recognises 67 miracles as having occurred at the site.
Last week Pope Benedict XVI celebrated his first papal Mass at the shrine in front of more than 200,000 pilgrims, including the church's leader in England and Wales, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor.Last week Pope Benedict XVI celebrated his first papal Mass at the shrine in front of more than 200,000 pilgrims, including the church's leader in England and Wales, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor.
The anniversary service is being celebrated by Cardinal Walter Kasper, president of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity.
Dr Williams was invited to preach at the International Mass by the Bishop of Tarbes and Lourdes, Jacques Perrier.
Monsignor Andrew Faley, of the Catholic Bishops' Conference, said Dr Williams' visit demonstrated the strength of the relationship between the Anglican and Catholic Churches.Monsignor Andrew Faley, of the Catholic Bishops' Conference, said Dr Williams' visit demonstrated the strength of the relationship between the Anglican and Catholic Churches.
"It's a great opportunity to recognise the place of the Virgin Mary within our shared tradition," he added."It's a great opportunity to recognise the place of the Virgin Mary within our shared tradition," he added.