“A book to pay tribute to them”: discovering the faces that bring the Sanctuary of Lourdes to life

Lourdes, its Cave of Apparitions, its miracles and even its millions of visitors each year… If this high place of pilgrimage is known throughout the world, the hundreds of people who bring it to life on a daily basis are much less so. This is why Salvator editions, in partnership with the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes, have just published a work entitled “Behind the scenes of Lourdes: these faces which bring the Sanctuary to life”.

“The idea of ​​this book is to make all the little hands of the Sanctuary known to the general public. They are the ones who make it what it is,” says Chelo Feral, the communications officer who oversaw the creation of the book. is also a way of paying tribute to them: those who work today but also all those who worked in the past and who are no longer here…”

A hundred professions

Written by journalist Benjamin Coste (from the weekly Christian Family), and superbly illustrated by Pierre Vincent (official photographer and videographer of the Sanctuary), this work is composed of 18 portraits full of humanity, highlighting the great diversity of the site's professions.

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“There are those we see, even if we don't particularly remember their faces, like the security agents, the chaplains, the sacristans, the felt-makers, etc., says Chelo Feral. But there are also all those who we don't see: laundry employees, technical service agents, those in management… There are around 240 employees and 80 seasonal workers, for more than 100 professions represented at the Sanctuary. It’s pretty gigantic!” Without forgetting the many volunteers and hospital workers who give their time to serve sick pilgrims and who are, obviously, represented in the work.

Serving pilgrims

With its multitude of services (administrative, technical, archives, IT, communication, audiovisual, etc.), we could almost compare the Sanctuary to a large local authority… With the difference that it includes unusual professions, even unique in the world such as that of a felt maker. The function of these agents is to watch over the prayers of pilgrims materialized by a lit candle. Cleaning the chapels of light very early in the morning, removing the melted paraffin from the day before, replenishing stocks or even lighting the candles ordered on the internet are all part of their daily missions.

We can also mention the organist who, in addition to playing during masses, is responsible for composing the music for the Sanctuary. And many other jobs “behind the scenes at Lourdes” can be discovered in Benjamin Coste’s book. Moreover, when reading the portraits, we notice that no employee of the Sanctuary is there by chance, even those who are not believers… “For many, it is a vocation to work here. It responds to a need or an inner journey, underlines Chelo Feral And they all share the same objective: to make each visit to the Sanctuary of Lourdes an unforgettable moment.