Follow our Assumptionist journalist (Day 1)
Late
Two hours late. The Paris train to Lourdes also underwent the heat that falls on the South West when the National Pilgrims meet in Lourdes. In cars, air conditioning is essential. And the controllers ask travelers to lower the curtains to the windows to reduce the impact of the sun in the spaces.
Astonishly, despite the fatigue and heat, the nervousness of travelers are rare. The joy of “turning to the star” – theme of the pilgrimage to come – prevails and reminds everyone that it is not a simple summer trip. From all over France, other pilgrims trains are also on the way. For sick people, the spaces have been developed. Medical beds have been installed on the seats with a know-how which is transmitted from generation to generation of hospital workers. And then, you must plan logistics, care, meals. A hive of servant pilgrims. Turned towards the star.
Always neophytes
The evening fell in Lourdes. On the station quays, the train pours its share of pilgrims and tired travelers. Many hospital workers watch to accommodate people in a chair or in fragility. One of the graces to arrive late on this day is to be able to benefit from a more lenient temperature while the sun has just set. You must now find your hotel in the middle of the crowd that goes and goes to the streets of Lourdes. In the sanctuary, the evening wedding procession is already underway.
Along the way, a first meeting is made by walking. Iulian is an assumptionist religious of Romanian origin. And a brother in faith. Man is also a passionate amateur photographer who covers the pilgrimage event over the days. The rest of the year, in his diocese in eastern France, he is one of the priests who accompanies several hundred catechumens, neophytes and confimands. “Each year we are surprised by the motivation of these adolescents and adults of any origin who ask to receive baptism.”
And to tell one or the other journey of these men and women who have joined our Christian communities for several years now, against all odds. “But how do they stay there?” The question is important for the future. “Perhaps by inviting members of communities to become sponsors and godmothers fraternal enough to support the neophytes over time?”
Between sadness and joy
The row of souvenir and bistro stores keeps surprising the tourist and the pilgrim. A mixture of necessary services and religious kitsch which also make the charm of this corner of Lourdes, there below the old town, nestled all against the sanctuary which thus preserves its space dedicated to prayer and the approach of pilgrimage. The evening is advanced and in the bars, the meal service-pizzas, crunch-monsieur and other fried chicken-touches its end. But you can still have a drink.
Attendant alone on the side of the bistro, Gérard has a little lost look in the void. It looks like a table of Manet, when he paints the woman with absinthe, lost in his thoughts. But as soon as we recognize ourselves, joy returns. “Happy to see you again. What have you become since last year? ” The slightly broken voice, Gérard tells. His slightly emaciated face testifies to the time of the test he is going through. His health concerns that prevent him from making restful nights. And those of his wife who must manage chemotherapy, however feared. The eyes getting on.
“And in Mosaic Pélé?” Gérard for quite a few years is present at this group which welcomes on the heights of Lourdes, at the Cité Saint-Pierre, pilgrims who have fewer means to offer the hotel. An informal group of urban, suburbs and provincials with multiple colors and origins. The presence of Christians in the Antilles or Africa brings its share of joyful songs which often open the amazed crowds, like Moses crossing the Red Sea. The joy of the pilgrim is contagious, impressive. It is she that Gérard is still looking for. Year after year.
