| Our Lady of Laus | |
|---|---|
 Painting with the apparition of Our Lady of Laus toBenoîte Rencurel | |
| Location | Saint-Étienne-le-Laus,France |
| Date | 1664–1718 |
| Witness | Benoîte Rencurel |
| Type | Marian apparition |
| Approval | May 5, 2008[1] Bishop Jean-Michel Di Falco [de;it;la;nl;pl] Diocese of Gap and Embrun |
| Shrine | Sanctuary of Our Lady of Laus |
| Feast day | May 1 |
Our Lady of Laus (French:Notre-Dame du Laus), orRefuge of Sinners, denotesMarian apparitions that took place between 1664 and 1718 inSaint-Étienne-le-Laus,France, toBenoîte Rencurel, a young shepherdess. On 23 May 1855,Pope Pius IX granted aCanonical Coronation to the marble image of Our Lady of Laus. On 5 May 2008, the apparitions were approved by decree of the localBishop, Jean-Michel de Falco Leandri, with approval of theHoly See.[2][3][4]
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Situated inDauphiné, in southern France at the foot of theAlps, just southeast ofGap, is the valley of Laus. Its name means "lake" in the local dialect, as there once was one at the bottom of the basin. In 1666, the hamlet held twenty households scattered in little huts. The inhabitants had built a chapel dedicated to theAnnunciation,Notre-Dame de Bon Rencontre (means Our Lady of the Good Encounter, i.e., the Annunciation).[5]
Benoîte Rencurel was born on 16 September 1647, into a modest family in the village ofSaint-Etienne d’Avançon,France. Benoîte's father died when she was seven and by the age of twelve, she had to work as a shepherdess to help her family.[5] At the age of seventeen, she was still unable to read or write.[3][4] She thus prayed theRosary all day long during her daily journeys through the mountains with her flock.[2]
In May 1664, after hearing a sermon from her parish priest, the seventeen-year-old Benoîte felt a deep desire to meet the Virgin Mary. Soon after,Saint Maurice, a third centurymartyr who was greatly honored in Laus, appeared to her near a nearby chapel in ruins, dedicated to Saint Maurice. He told her that her wish would be soon granted.[2] He also warned her that if she remained in that area, the local guards would take her flock if they found it there. Saint Maurice told the shepherdess to go a nearby valley, called "Vallon des Fours", above Saint-Étienne, where she would see theMother of God.[5][4]
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The next day, on 16 May 1664, Benoite took her sheep to the valley called "Vallon des Fours". She came to a grotto, where a "beautiful lady" appeared to her. She offered her to share the hard bread that she carried. The beautiful Lady smiled, but she left without saying a word.[3][4] For a period of about four months, the Lady came back every day, spoke to Benoîte and gave her intensive education, which transformed her behavior and spiritual life. Others could not hear what the apparition said. On 29 August 1664, the "beautiful lady" revealed her identity: "I amLady Mary, the Mother of my very dear Son".[2][3][4][6]
At the end of September 1664, after a month of absence, Lady Mary reappeared to Benoîte on the other side of the valley, in Pindreau. The Lady said to her : "Go to Laus, you will find a chapel there from which sweet scents will emanate, and there you will speak to me often". The next day, Benoîte made her way to Laus from her village and, guided by the smell, found an old chapel dedicated to Our Lady of the Good Encounter. And while the smell of violets was there, the chapel was in bad condition. Inside, standing on the altar, Mary revealed her plan to Benoîte: "I have asked my Son for this place for the conversion of sinners, and He has granted it to me".[2][4] "It is my desire that a new chapel be built here in honour of my beloved Son. It will become a place of conversion for numerous sinners and I shall appear here very often" said the Lady to the young shepherdess.[7] When the sanctuary would be built, Mary also told Benoîte that the oil from the sanctuary lamp would work miracles with the infirm if they received the anointing with faith in her intercession.[3][4][6]
Father Antoine Lambert, thevicar general of the diocese, initially doubted the visions. He wanted to test her story and instructed Benoîte to ask the Virgin Mary for a sign or miracle that would prove the authenticity of her visions. Later, a crippled woman, whose legs had been permanently bent backward and who was said to be incurable by the doctors, had been attending a novena at the chapel. On the final day of her novena, her legs miraculously returned to normal, and she walked into the chapel, shouting “Miracle!”. Father Lambert, who had been saying Mass at the time, was moved to tears and exclamed “Yes, the hand of God is there”. With this extraordinary event, Father Lambert gave his approval to construct the church the Lady Mary had requested.[4]
For 54 years, the Virgin Mary continued to appear to Benoîte throughout her life. Benoîte became aDominican Tertiary and was called "Sister Benoîte".[2][4] She was given by Mary the mission to welcome the pilgrims. Benoîte was also given thegift of reading souls, to help the pilgrims make good confessions to the priests, by making them know their sins, remember the forgotten ones, and confess them and repent in thesacrament of Penance.[3] There have been many testimonies saying that a heavenly perfume would fill the church every time Mary would appear to Benoîte.[4] In addition toMarian apparitions, Benoîte also had apparitions ofangels, severalsaints, and mystical experiences such as visions ofParadise.
Between 1669 and 1684, she was also granted the vision of thecrucified Christ on the cross ofAvançon five times. On a Friday in July of 1673, according to Benoîte, Jesus on the cross told her: “My daughter, I show myself in this state so that you can participate in my Passion.”[3] United with Him, she lived a "mystical crucifixion" every Friday for several years and borestigmata.[2][4]
The message of Our Lady of Laus is a message of reconciliation with God, of confession of sin and penance, and a chapel to be built so sinners could convert, along with a house for priests to be built so they could administer thesacraments to sinners.[4]
According to Bishop Leandri, at the heart of the message given to Benoite is a conversion of souls which aims to bring full reconciliation with oneself, with others, and with God.[7]
The Laus apparitions are extensively documented thanks to the "Laus Manuscripts", which are a collection of writings produced by four authors who were eyewitnesses and personally acquainted with Benoîte Rencurel. These authors are:
After Benoîte's death, François Aubin collected and preserved the manuscripts, which totaled 1,800 pages of testimonies. He later passed them to the Fathers of Sainte-Garde, chaplains of the Laus pilgrimage. During theFrench Revolution, as the chaplains were either imprisoned or dispersed, one of them hid the documents in an attic, where they were forgotten.
In 1818, theOblate Fathers of Mary Immaculate took over the management of the pilgrimage. In 1824, one of the Oblates discovered the bundle of manuscripts. In 1850, at the request of Depéry, Bishop of Gap, the manuscripts were cataloged, organized and recopied byAbbot Galvin, resulting in the “Authentic Copy of the Manuscripts”.
In 1977, for the first time, the manuscripts were fully examined and presented to the public in Father De Labriolle's publication:Benoîte, la bergère de Notre-Dame du Laus. In 1996, as part of the ongoing process for thebeatification of Benoîte, which was reopened in 1981 byPope John Paul II thanks to Labriolle's historical work, 500 copies of the “Authentic Copy” were reproduced.[2]
By the spring of 1665, during the apparitions, pilgrims started to come to Laus. 130,000 pilgrims visited the shrine in the span of 18 months, with testimonies of healings and conversions. In September 1665, thediocese of Embrun authorized the pilgrimage, along with the construction of a church and the installation of priests.[2][3]
Between 1666 and 1669, a church was built and the chapel of Notre-Dame de Bon Rencontre was incorporated into it.[2]
On 23 May 1855,Pope Pius IX granted aCanonical Coronation to the marble image of Our Lady of Laus, with 40,000 people attending the crowning ceremony.[2] He later named Benoîte Rencurel a “Servant of God” in 1872.[4]
In 1892, the church was given the titleminor basilica, the Basilica of Our Lady of Laus.[2] The shrine is now run by diocesan clergy with the assistance of a community of the Brothers of Saint John.[3]
On 16 June 2005, the localBishop of Gap and Embrun, Jean-Michel Di Falco Leandri, wrote to theCongregation for the Doctrine of the Faith to inquire about the steps to recognize the supernatural nature of the Laus apparitions. Following theHoly See response, on 22 November 2005, Di Falco established a commission of theologians, historians, and scientifics to study the events. On 15 January 2007, the commission's report was sent to Di Falco, who submitted his judgment to theVatican.[2]
On 5 May 2008, Bishop Jean-Michel de Falco Leandri, promulgated the recognition decree and announced theHoly See's recognition of the apparitions as Our Lady of Laus, Refuge of Sinners, during a Mass held at the sanctuary in the presence of theApostolic Nuncio in FranceFortunato Baldelli, severalcardinals, and many bishops.[2][3][4]
In 2009,Pope Benedict XVI recognized the seer Benoîte Rencurelheroic in virtue and declared hervenerable.[2][4]
A few of the saints who have had a particular devotion to Our Lady of Laus includeSaint Eugène de Mazenod (1782–1861), founder of theOblates of Mary Immaculate; andPeter Julian Eymard (1811–1868), founder of theBlessed Sacrament Fathers and of theServants of the Blessed Sacrament. When Eymard was eleven years old he made a sixty-kilometer pilgrimage on foot in order to pray for nine days at the shrine while preparing for his First Communion.[8] Also devoted to Our Lady of Laus was DomJean-Baptiste Chautard, Abbot ofSept-Fons.
French philosopher and theologianJean Guitton said, “The Shrine of Laus is one of the most hidden and also most powerful treasures in the history of Europe”.[3][7]
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44°31′15″N6°09′09″E / 44.5208°N 6.1524°E /44.5208; 6.1524
