Those who visit the chapel of the sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes in Alta Gracia, in the province of Cordoba (Argentina), are witnesses of a fact that has no explanation: in the niche or base of the altarpiece, behind the altar, an image of the Virgin Mary is seen although the space is empty, that is to say that there is no such image.
According to AICA, what is seen is not a flat image of the Virgin of Lourdes, but it has relief, it is three-dimensional and with folds in the dress. Nor is it an illusion.
Everyone - believers or not - sees it.
Besides, the image appears in the photos. Another curious fact is that the image is clearly visible from the entrance door and fades away as you get closer.
Sources of the Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes of Alta Gracia indicated to ACI Prensa in this month of February 2025 that, although there is no specific pronouncement from the Archbishop of Cordoba, ecclesiastical jurisdiction in which the shrine that hosts this phenomenon is located, "everything remains the same and no new statements have been made".
The reflection and invitation of the rector of the Sanctuary of Lourdes de Alta Gracia
In statements to ACI Prensa this February 10, 2025, Fr. Pablo Pavone, rector of the sanctuary, commented that "one is discovering, with time, that the Mother of God is not democratic, What do I mean by this?
She is a mother and that is why she knows each one of her children and knows that they have different needs and that is why she approaches each one of them as if they were the only one and offers them what they need the most".
"Each one comes with their own. And if we had to speak of a motive, there are as many motives as hearts that visit the shrine and the Blessed Mother welcomes each one and establishes a very personal relationship with each one of us," he continued.
The Argentinean priest also indicated that "the second thing is the attitude with which we have to come to the sanctuary which is a place where one is a witness of numerous interventions of faith of the Virgin; and one goes as rescuing a common denominator in all this, in all the people who have a strong experience: The confidence with which they arrive".
"There are people who really teach me as a priest what that blind trust is," the rector emphasized.
In conclusion, Fr. Pavone stressed that "the doors are open here for all those who want to come, we invite everyone to come" during these days or on other occasions because "Our Lady has no almanac for all of them".
How did the phenomenon of the Virgin of Lourdes of Alta Gracia originate?
The chapel of the Virgin of Alta Gracia is located in a large property, where in 1916 a replica of the grotto of the Virgin of Lourdes in France was inaugurated.
In 1922 a commission was formed in Alta Gracia to build a chapel near the grotto and for years there was a statue of the Virgin of Lourdes in the center of the altarpiece of the temple.
In mid-2011 this image was removed from its base to be restored, which currently stands at the foot of the niche that was left empty.
One day one of the priests in charge of the sanctuary was going to close the chapel, and from the front door he saw an image in the empty place. He approached it several times, and each time he found that the image he saw from a distance faded away.
The image was gone, but it was certainly visible.
Faced with the phenomenon, the Discalced Carmelite friars of the shrine issued a statement in 2011 in which they pointed out that "the manifestation of the image of the Blessed Virgin Mary has no explanation for the moment."
"It should be interpreted by the people of God as a sign to increase and deepen the Christian faith and to arouse in the hearts of men the conversion to the love of God and their participation in the life of the Church," they indicated.
VIDEO:
https://www.aciprensa.com/videos/video-imagen-virgen-de-lourdes-de-alta-gracia.mp4