Our Lady’s first apparition to Bernadette Soubirous will be celebrated at Lourdes chapel in Għajnsielem on Tuesday, February 11. On the days commemorating the apparitions, masses will be said at the chapel at 5.15am, 9am, 1pm, 3.30pm and 5pm.

On Tuesday, the 5pm mass will be celebrated by Bishop Anton Teuma, together with Għajnsielem archpriest Frankie Bajada and the chapel’s rector Fr Renato Borg. The bishop’s visit coincides with his pastoral visit to Għajnsielem.

Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament will be held between 4 and 5pm and from 5.30 to 7.30pm. Also on Tuesday, a mass in Italian for the Italian community in Gozo will be celebrated at 7pm.

The Marian apparitions at Lourdes were reported in 1858 by Soubirous. She reported 18 apparitions between February 11 and July 16, 1858.

Tuesday, February 11, is also the World Day of the Sick.

In his message to the sick, Pope Francis offers a reflection on the theme: “Hope does not disappoint (Rm 5:5) but strengthens us in times of trial”, emphasising the profound role the Christian tradition accords to the theological virtue of hope in moments of illness and suffering.

The Holy Father calls for our renewed commitment to caring for the sick with love, compassion, and faith, recognising that hope is a gift that sustains both those who suffer and those who accompany them.

The devotion to Our Lady of Lourdes in Gozo began when a statue of the Virgin Mary was placed in a natural cavity beneath Tal-Qortin promontory overlooking Mġarr harbour on March 25, 1879.

The statue was blessed by bishop Pietro Pace on June 3, 1883. Mgr Pace urged devotees to raise money to build a chapel in honour of Our Lady.

The foundation stone of the gothic-style chapel, designed by Emmanuel Galizia, was laid on June 10, 1888. It was built by master mason Wiġi Vella of Żebbuġ, Gozo. The chapel was blessed on August 27, 1893.