In Lourdes, went on Benedict XVI, "I had an important meeting with the French bishops: it was a moment of intense spiritual communion, in which together we have entrusted to the Virgin our joint expectations and pastoral concerns". The next step was the Eucharistic procession with thousands of devotees, including many sick people. On Monday 15th September, the Day of the Our Lady of the Sorrows, after a short visit to the Hospital Chapel, the Pontiff officiated Mass on the parvis of the basilica of the Rosary, "during which he said I administered the sacrament of the Last Rites. With the sick and the people who take care of them, I wanted to meditate on the tears of Mary that she shed underneath the Cross and on her smile, which lights up the Easter morning. Inviting those presents to thank "the Lord for this apostolic journey full of so many spiritual gifts" and "because Mary, in appearing to Saint Bernadette, opened in the world a privileged space to meet God’s love that heals and saves", the Pope concluded: "In Lourdes, the Holy Virgin invites everyone to consider the earth a place of pilgrimage towards the final homeland, which is Heaven".
