Vandals Damage Lourdes Grotto at Mount St. Mary's

[jmm08]

From Local NBC News (Washington DC):

Vandals Damage Grotto Replica On Eve Of Anniversary Mass

EMMITSBURG, Md. – Police have charged two men with defacing religious property and other crimes for alleged vandalism at a well-known Catholic shrine at Mount St. Mary’s University in Emmitsburg.

Timothy H. of Silver Spring and Jesse H. of Derwood are accused of doing $1,500 worth of damage at the National Shrine Grotto of our Lady of Lourdes.

 

[jmm08]

Today – 11 February 2008 – was a cold day. And I was happy about that because 150 years ago today in Lourdes France it was a cold day. It was cold enough that some children went out to find some firewood to make a little heat in the poor family’s home.

At mass this morning at a Catholic Church near where I work, there was no mention at all of Our Lady of Lourdes. There weren’t nearly as many there as on Ash Wednesday. I stayed afterwards and went to the beautiful chapel honoring Mary. But nobody else went. And I received a gift of tears.

Later in the day – I had already prayed the Joyful mysteries in the morning – I got a wonderful idea. I prayed the Rosary with mysteries remembering St. Bernadette. I wound up praying 10 mysteries and I had a very good time doing it.

Does Our Lady have to resort to getting vandals to do slight damage to one of her shrines just to get in the news? That it is 150 years ago today – that it was a cold day in Lourdes France. Just as it was a cold day around here in Northern Virginia and Maryland.

Please pray for the young vandals. Somehow I think Our Lady has already chosen them for more than getting Our Lady of Lourdes in the news. How would they have known when to do this and get Mary in the news?

– jmm08