At 19.00, the aircraft carrying the Pope landed at Tarbes-Lourdes-Pyrénées Airport in Lourdes. After the welcome from some local leaders, the Holy Father transferred by car and open car to the Grotto of the Apparitions of Massabielle, passing across the Leo XIV Bridge, where he briefly greeted the Mayor of Lourdes.

Upon arrival at the Grotto of the Apparitions, the Pope was welcomed by Bishop Jean-Marc Micas of Tarbes and Lourdes, and by the rector of the Sanctuary, Father Michel Daubanes.

After a moment of silent prayer before the statue of the Virgin Mary, the Holy Father approached the rock, touched it, drank a glass of water from the spring offered to him by the rector of the Sanctuary, and received a candle which he placed on the candelabrum; he then recited the prayer.

At the end, the Holy Father Leo XIV placed the Golden Rose at the foot of the statue of Our Lady, recited the Lord’s Prayer and imparted his blessing.

Before taking his leave, the Pope greeted the chaplains of the Sanctuary; afterwards, he travelled by car to the bishop’s residence where he dined privately.

The following is the prayer recited by the Holy Father Leo XIV before the Grotto of the Apparitions of Massabielle:

Prayer of the Holy Father

Our Lady of Lourdes, the Immaculate Conception, in this blessed place you spoke with such gentleness and tenderness to Saint Bernadette, a humble daughter of the French people, to convey to the world a radiant message of prayer, conversion and hope.  We turn to you with trust, foryou are the Mother whom Jesus has given, and you are attentive to all our needs.

We pray to you, our Mother, for France, for you are her Patroness and have protected her for so many centuries.  Grant its people the gift of fraternal harmony, so that they may build a harmonious society that banishes all violence and hatred, and allows everyone to work, to start a family and to live life to the fullest in peace and serenity.  May the most disadvantaged and the poorest always be supported.  Obtain for France wise and generous leaders, ready to make sacrifices, capable of responding to challenges, and eager to serve the common good.  May they keep France at peace within the family of nations, and may they make her voice heard in promoting the defense of fundamental human rights and peace in the world, rejecting the mentality of war once and for all.

Blessed Virgin Mary, we present to you the People of God journeying in this country, which you have so deeply marked with your presence.  Renew the faith and fervor of Christian families, who are so dear to your heart, so that they may live day by day in the presence of Jesus, in his grace, and with his support through the difficulties they face.  May they be generously open to life, and may God awaken vocations within them, especially to the priesthood and religious life.  Grant that your Church in France may show, especially to the youngest among them, the luminous path of the Gospel, so that they may build the just and fraternal society to which they aspire.

Finally, Mother full of love, we entrust to you our most urgent personal intentions, especially those of the sick and suffering, as well as all those who accompany them, who have come together to find strength and healing at the spring of Massabielle.  We entrust to you our living and deceased loved ones.  We pray that you will remove all the obstacles that still separate us from your beloved Son and that he may reign in all hearts.