More than 5,000 Marian devotees, 25 priests and around 20 religious sisters took part in the annual feast of Our Lady of Lourdes at Bamunigam in Odisha’s Kandhamal district on 11 Feb.
Father Pradosh Chandra Nayak, Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar and the main celebrant, urged the faithful to deepen their prayer life.
“Mother of Jesus, our Mother, encourages us to pray the Rosary daily. She reminds us that God’s mercy is always available, that suffering has meaning, and that heaven is close to those who call upon the Lord with faith,” he said in his introductory address.
In his homily, Father Clement Bagsingh recalled the message associated with Lourdes. “She calls for repentance and conversion of heart, saying, ‘Penance, penance, penance,’ inviting us to return to God. Mary chose a poor and humble girl, Bernadette, showing that God lifts up the lowly and speaks through the simple of heart,” he said.
The feast has been celebrated at the Bamunigam Mission Station since 1972, when the MSFS Fathers introduced the devotion. Over the decades, the annual gathering has drawn participants from different faith backgrounds, many of whom attribute personal experiences of healing or answered prayers to the intercession of Mother Mary.
Sukanti Panigrahi, a Hindu resident of Bamunigam, said she had sought Mary’s intercession after doctors told her she could not conceive.
“After several years of marriage, medical examinations confirmed there was no chance of conception. I consulted many doctors but nothing worked. I began visiting the shrine daily, lighting candles and praying. After a year, I conceived. My doctor described it as rare and unexpected. For me, it was a miracle through Our Lady of Lourdes,” she said.
Mohan Charan Nayak, a local youth, spoke of a paralysed man who regularly visited the grotto at Bamunigam. “He prayed there for months. Later, he was able to walk again. People here believe he was healed through Mary’s intercession,” he said.
Father Manoranjan Singh, Vice-Principal of St. John’s English Medium School in Balliguda and a native of Bamunigam, shared his own account.
“I struggled in school and found it difficult to cope with my studies. I began praying the Rosary daily at the grotto and promised that if I passed my Class 10 examination, I would dedicate my life to God as a priest,” he said.
Singh said he passed the examination despite academic difficulties and later joined the seminary. He has now served as a priest of the Archdiocese of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar for 27 years.
He also referred to reports from the 2007 anti-Christian violence in Kandhamal, when some residents claimed to have heard a woman crying near the church premises at night. “Some faithful believed it was Mother Mary weeping for peace,” he said.
The feast was also observed at St. Joseph’s Parish in Godapur, where parishioners gathered for Mass and prayer services.
