Our Lady of Lourdes Shrine, Villianur

Last updated

Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes, Villianur, Puducherry
Sanctuaire Notre-Dame de Lourdes
Villianur shrine.jpg
Our Lady of Lourdes Shrine, Villianur
Our Lady of Lourdes Shrine, Villianur
11°54′41″N79°45′38″E / 11.911262°N 79.760664°E / 11.911262; 79.760664
LocationVillianur, Puducherry
Country India
Denomination Catholic Church
Sui iuris church Latin Church
Website https://villianurshrine.in
History
Status Parish church and Marian shrine
Founded8 April 1877 (1877-04-08)
Dedication Our Lady of Lourdes
Events8 May 1886 - The statue was crowned in the name of Pope Leo XIII, and permanent plenary indulgence attached, declared as a Shrine.
Architecture
Functional statusActive
Architect(s) Fr. Tarbes, M.E.P
Architectural type Chapel
Style Gothic Revival [ citation needed ]
Groundbreaking 1866
Administration
Archdiocese Pondicherry and Cuddalore
Parish Villianur
Clergy
Archbishop Francis Kalist
Rector Fr. S. Pitchaimuthu

Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes, Villianur, Puducherry (French: Sanctuaire Notre-Dame de Lourdes) is a Catholic Marian shrine and a parish church in Villianur, Puducherry, India. The shrine is dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary under the title of Our Lady of Lourdes.

Contents

Pope Leo XIII issued a pontifical decree of coronation on 21 February 1886 towards the venerated Marian statue and declared the site an official Marian shrine. The former Archbishop of Pondicherry, François-Jean-Marie Laouënan executed the rite of coronation on 8 May 1886.

History

A rare old picture of the shrine Villianur shrine old picture.jpg
A rare old picture of the shrine

In 1858, following the apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary to St. Bernadette in Lourdes, France, the first church and grotto dedicated to Our Lady of Lourdes outside France were constructed in Villianur.

In 1867, the MEP missionaries in Puducherry wished to build a Chapel at Villianur which is 13 kilometers from Pondicherry, on the road to Villupuram. Hence they bought a piece of land at Villianur and Rev. Fr. Gou, then procurator of the Puducherry mission after a long negotiation with the Hindu temple authorities of Thirukameswarer Gogilambigai Temple started to build a Chapel at Kanuvapet on the outskirts of Villianur. It is said that the building of the church was sponsored by the thanksgiving offering of Dr.Lephine's family for the miraculous cure of his daughter.

It took 10 years to complete the chapel. Rev. Fr. Tarbes a cousin brother of St. Bernadette, the visionary of Lourdes, was appointed as the parish priest of Villianur mission. Since he had a direct report of the apparitions of Our Lady of Lourdes, this chapel is the first in the world to be named after Our Lady of Lourdes outside Lourdes, France.

Central Altar with the Miraculous Statue Villianur shrine altar.jpg
Central Altar with the Miraculous Statue

In 1877, with the help of St. Bernadette, a beautiful statue of Our Lady of Lourdes was brought from Lourdes, France, and installed in the chapel's grotto. The statue, associated with numerous miracles, arrived in Puducherry on 4 April 1877. The box containing the statue was dropped three times on the way to the cathedral, but arrived intact and was sent on to Villianur.

The statue was claimed to be associated with a number of miracles in the late nineteenth century. In 1885 the archbishop Laouënan went to Rome and provided a report of the alleged miracles that took place at the shrine to Pope Leo XIII. The archbishop received the pontifical decree on 21 February 1886 to declare the site an official shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes and to canonically crown the statue.

On the archbishop's return from Rome on 8 May 1886, a pontifical high mass was held, with the celebration being witnessed by around 40,000 people. At the mass, the archbishop crowned the statue in the name of the pope, and declared the church as the Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes, Villianur, attaching permanent plenary indulgences to the shrine.

Pond

Church Pond Villianur shrine pond.jpg
Church Pond

In 1923, walls were constructed around the pond in front of the chapel. The pond, once used as a water reservoir for the irrigation of the lands around and water came from the big Ousteri Lake which is 10 km away from here. And this pond was constructed by Fr. Lesbond, the Parish Priest, with donations from Zigon organized by Mr. Lesage. Mr. Larocgue from the people in Zigon got a statue from Lourdes and in 1924 and a solemn ceremony took place to install the statue in the middle of the sacred pond after the due consecration of the statue and the pond.

It is believed by the people here that the pond water is miraculous and has the ability to cure the sick and bring good fortune. This is the only Catholic church in Asia having a sacred pond in front of the church. [1]

In 1930, the shrine's flagpole was installed. In 1956, a home and school for orphans were established in the name of Our Lady of Lourdes.

The grotto

19 years after Lourdes apparitions, the first church and grotto for Our Lady of Lourdes was constructed in 1877. The centenary celebrations was celebrated on 10 September 1977. As a remembrance of the centenary celebrations, Rev. Fr. Duissen built a big grotto in the garden of the church, which was consecrated by bishop Venmani S. Selvanather on 10 October 1978. The grotto which was inside the church was modified according as per the instruction of the Second Vatican Council.[ citation needed ]

The 125th Anniversary Celebrations

On 8 October 2011, on the 125th anniversary of the crowning of the statue by the Pope, Archbishop Antony Anandarayar re-crowned the image with a diamond crown donated by devotees.

Annual feast

Annual feast of Our Lady of Lourdes shrine commence with the nine days of Novena and flag hoisting on the 6th day after Easter Sunday. The car procession is done during these days. The feast day is on the 15th day after Easter. This is a Puducherry state Christian festival.

The Holy Water from Lourdes

Every first Saturday in the month of August, The Holy Water from Lourdes Church, France is poured into the 'Sacred Pond' at Villianur Shrine. This event is attended by thousands of devotees every year.

Pilgrimage on foot

As a sign of gratitude to Our Lady, for saving the city from a cyclone, the first pilgrimage on foot took place on 10 October 1977 from Pondicherry and this tradition is still continued on the second Saturday in the month of October. It starts from Immaculate Conception Cathedral, Pondicherry and ends in the shrine covering approximately 12 km.

Subsequent Developments

New Church

The Altar of Gratia Plena Church The Altar of Gratia Plena Church.jpg
The Altar of Gratia Plena Church

As the existing Church could not accommodate the growing number of pilgrims, a new Church is planned with the approval of our Archbishop Most. Rev. Dr. Antony Anandarayar. On 10 September 2011, Rev. Fr. A. Arulanandam, the Vicar General of Archdiocese blessed and officially commenced the construction work for the Church. Rev. Fr. C. Joseph Arumaiselvam, the procurator and many other priests were present at the event. Construction was completed in 2017.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lourdes</span> Commune in Occitania, France

Lourdes is a market town situated in the Pyrenees. It is part of the Hautes-Pyrénées department in the Occitanie region in southwestern France. Prior to the mid-19th century, the town was best known for its Château fort, a fortified castle that rises up from a rocky escarpment at its center.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bernadette Soubirous</span> French Roman Catholic saint (1844–1879)

Bernadette Soubirous, also known as Bernadette of Lourdes, was the firstborn daughter of a miller from Lourdes, in the department of Hautes-Pyrénées in France, and is best known for experiencing apparitions of a "young lady" who asked for a chapel to be built at the nearby cave-grotto. These apparitions occurred between 11 February and 16 July 1858, and the young lady who appeared to her identified herself as the "Immaculate Conception".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes</span> Marian shrine in Hautes-Pyrénées, France

The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes is a Catholic Marian shrine and pilgrimage site dedicated to Our Lady of Lourdes in the town of Lourdes, Hautes-Pyrénées, France. The sanctuary includes several religious buildings and monuments around the grotto of Massabielle, the place where the events of the Lourdes apparitions occurred in 1858, among them are three basilicas, the Basilica of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, the Rosary Basilica and the Basilica of St. Pius X, respectively known as the upper, lower and underground basilica.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carfin Grotto</span> Christian shrine in Scotland

Carfin Lourdes Grotto is a Catholic shrine in Scotland dedicated to Our Lady of Lourdes and created in the early twentieth century. The "Carfin Grotto", as the shrine is locally termed, was the brainchild of Canon Thomas N. Taylor, parish priest of St. Francis Xavier's Parish in the small, mining village of Carfin, which lies two miles east of Motherwell, in the West of Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Our Lady of Lourdes</span> A title of Mary, mother of Jesus

Our Lady of Lourdes is a title of the Virgin Mary. She is venerated under this title by the Roman Catholic Church due to her apparitions that occurred in Lourdes, France. The first apparition of 11 February 1858, of which Bernadette Soubirous told her mother that a "Lady" spoke to her in the cave of Massabielle while she was gathering firewood with her sister and a friend. Similar apparitions of the "Lady" were reported on 18 occasions that year, until the climax revelation in which she introduced herself as: "the Immaculate Conception". On 18 January 1862, the local Bishop of Tarbes Bertrand-Sévère Laurence endorsed the veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Lourdes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chapel of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal</span> Catholic shrine in Paris, France

The Chapel of Graces of the Miraculous Virgin or informally the Chapel of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, is a Marian shrine located in Paris, France.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lourdes apparitions</span> 1858 reported supernatural activity in Lourdes, France

The Lourdes apparitions are several Marian apparitions reported in 1858 by Bernadette Soubirous, the 14-year-old daughter of a miller, in the town of Lourdes in Southern France.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Basilica of Our Lady of Good Health</span> Church in Tamil Nadu, India

The Basilica of Our Lady of Good Health, also known as Sanctuary of Our Lady of Velankanni, is a Christian shrine located at the town of Velankanni, Tamil Nadu, India. The shrine is dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flatrock, Newfoundland and Labrador</span> Town in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada

Flatrock is a town in Newfoundland and Labrador. The town had a population of 1,722 in the Canada 2021 Census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rosary Basilica</span>

TheBasilica of Our Lady of the Rosary is a Catholic church and minor basilica within the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes in France. Its main theme is a celebration and depiction of the Rosary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Catholic Marian church buildings</span> Type of religious building

Catholic Marian churches are religious buildings dedicated to the veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary. These churches were built throughout the history of the Catholic Church, and today they can be found on every continent including Antarctica. The history of Marian church architecture tells the unfolding story of the development of Catholic Mariology.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima</span> Roman Catholic church in Valenzuela, Philippines

The Parish of the National Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima is a Roman Catholic parish church and national shrine in the Diocese of Malolos in the Philippines. It serves as a Philippine apostolate of Our Lady of Fatima in Fátima, Portugal, which is recognized by the Roman Catholic Church in the Philippines. The shrine is located near the Our Lady of Fatima University campus in Marulas, Valenzuela City in Metro Manila, Philippines. The shrine is one of the three major pilgrimage sites in the Diocese of Malolos, with the National Shrine of St. Anne in Hagonoy and the National Shrine of Divine Mercy in Marilao as the other sites.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lourdes grotto</span> Replicas of the Massabielle Grotto

A Lourdes grotto is a replica of the grotto where the Lourdes apparitions occurred in 1858, in the town of Lourdes in France, now part of the sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes. Some Lourdes grottos are almost identical reproductions of the scene of the apparitions, with statues of Our Lady of Lourdes and Bernadette Soubirous in a natural or artificial cave, while others may differ from the original in size, shape or style.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Pondicherry</span> Church in Puducherry, India

Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, situated on the south boulevard of Pondicherry in Puducherry, India, is an oriental specimen of Gothic Revival architecture. It contains rare stained glass panels depicting events from the life of Christ and saints of the Catholic Church. In recent years it has become one of the famous pilgrimage spots for Christians.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Basilica of Our Lady of Lanka</span> Church in Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka

The Basilica of Our Lady of Lanka is a Roman Catholic basilica in Tewatte, Sri Lanka. Being thus in a somewhat distant suburb of Colombo, it comes under the purview of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Colombo and is a site of pilgrimage for Sri Lankan Catholics. The church is home to the venerated statue of Our Lady of Lanka.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes</span> Roman Catholic church in Quezon City, Philippines

The National Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes, commonly known as the Church of Lourdes of Quezon City, is a Roman Catholic national shrine in Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines. The church is administered by the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin of the Philippine Ecclesiastical Province and under the Vicariate of San Pedro Bautista of the Latin Church diocese of Cubao.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">François-Jean-Marie Laouënan</span>

François-Jean-Marie Laouënan was a member of Paris Foreign Missions Society and was the archbishop of Archdiocese of Pondicherry. On 24 July 1868 he was appointed to succeed Bishop Joseph-Isidore Godelle as Vicar Apostolic of Pondicherry. He was consecrated as a bishop on 11 October 1868. When Pope Leo XII established Catholic hierarchy in India, Mgr. Laouënan was appointed as Archbishop of the same see on 25 November 1886. He was the archbishop until his death on 29 September 1892. He was succeeded by Joseph-Adolphe Gandy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes, Notre Dame</span> Religious site in Indiana, United States

The Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes is located at the University of Notre Dame in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States, and is a reproduction of the Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes in Lourdes, France. The current Grotto was built in 1896, replacing a wooden grotto built on August 22, 1878. An artificial rock cave, the Grotto is used by its visitors as a sacred space for prayer, meditation, and outdoor Mass.

The Shrine of St. Bernadette is a Roman Catholic church in Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto, Heiligenkreuz</span> Lourdes Grotto, Heiligenkreuz

The Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto in Heiligenkreuz is a Lourdes grotto in Heiligenkreuz, a municipality in the Vienna Woods in the district of Baden near Vienna, which was created in 2017 by the Heiligenkreuz Abbey as a religious monument in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Like all similar grottoes of Our Lady of Lourdes around the world, it is reminiscent of the world-famous grotto of the apparition of the Virgin Mary in the French pilgrimage town of Lourdes.

References

  1. yitsadmin (24 December 2021). "Our Lady of Lourdes Shrine, Villianur, Pondicherry, India | CSB". Catholic Shrine Basilica. Retrieved 18 June 2024.