The pastoral theme for 2004 was the third in the series of the “signs” of Lourdes, and this year’s “sign” was the rock of the Grotto. The image of Lourdes which is best known throughout the world is the Grotto, the signs throughout the town of Lourdes point to “la Grotte” (the Grotto). And yet it is the spring contained within the Grotto and the apparitions of Our Lady which happened within the Grotto that are at the heart of the story of Lourdes.
The water of the spring was the sign used in the pastoral theme for 2002 “Go, drink of the spring and wash yourself there”. Water is more readily associated with the life of the Church, it is used in the sacrament of baptism, and at the Eucharist. It flowed from the pierced side of Christ together with His blood. But rock has no liturgy or rite associated with it. And yet…
“God alone is my rock, my stronghold, my fortress!” (Psalm 61/62: 3, 7). In the Old Testament, God revealed himself on the mountain of Sinai, he chose Mount Zion as his dwelling. In the Gospels, several events take place on mounts or rocks: the Sermon on the Mount, the Transfiguration, the sending out of the twelve, the Ascension. Even Calvary is Golgotha the skull shaped rock
And Christ Himself is associated with rock “He is the living stone, rejected by men, but chosen by God and precious to him; set yourselves close to him so that you too, the holy priesthood that offers spiritual sacrifices which Jesus Christ has made acceptable to God, may be living stones making a spiritual house. As scripture says: See how I lay in Zion a precious cornerstone that I have chosen and the man who rests his trust on it will not be disappointed [Isaiah 28: 16]. That means that for you who are believers, it is precious; but for unbelievers, the stone rejected by the builders has proved to be the keystone [Psalm 18: 22], a stone to stumble over, a rock to bring men down [Isaiah 8: 14]. They stumble over it because they do not believe in the word; it was the fate in store for them.” (1 Peter 2: 4 – 8).
These and other references from both the Old and New Testament (Psalm 117/118: 22, Matthew 21: 42, Acts 4: 11 and Romans 9: 33) show us how references to rock or stone appear at the heart of our faith.
In 2004, in order to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the dogma of the Immaculate Conception the French bishops invited Pope John Paul II, successor to St Peter, to come to Lourdes for 14th/15th August 2004. The Pope’s visit also helped us to fix our minds on the pastoral theme for 2004: "The Lord is My Rock". When Jesus asked Peter, "Who do you say I am?" Peter replied, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." (Matthew 16: 15, 16). Following Peter's profession of faith, Jesus said, "You are Peter and upon this rock I will build my Church." (Matthew 16:18). It is upon this faith that the Church is built. The Church of St Peter's, Rome is built over the bones of St. Peter. In Lourdes, the altar of the Upper Basilica is above the Grotto; this church is built on the rock of the Grotto.
In short, the centrality of “rock” in our faith is highlighted by the rock in and of the Grotto of Lourdes. The rock of the Grotto, encloses the spring, the statue of Our Lady and an altar on which the Eucharist is celebrated. And since Easter morning 2004, the Eucharist has been celebrated on a new altar, a rock. As pilgrims file through the Grotto, touching the rock, they are not being superstitious, but rather are instinctively reaching out to the core of their faith, Jesus Christ and his Church.