“Hail, full of grace”
Pilgrims from all over the world have been converging on Rome to pass through the Holy Door. The Jubilee Year will be officially concluded at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes during the 11 p.m. Mass at the Grotto of Massabielle on 31st December. Throughout the year, many people have been coming to Lourdes,
Throughout the year, many people have come to Lourdes, a sanctuary of international renown and popularity. Pilgrims have been able to complete the Jubilee Way and receive the plenary indulgence offered during the Jubilee Year.
In 2026, the Sanctuary is proposing a year of welcome, listening and a ‘yes’ that changes everything, placing the theme of the Annunciation at the centre of all reflections: ‘Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you’.
Programme for 31st December 2025:
10 a.m.: Mass at the Grotto – broadcast on Lourdes+
11.15 a.m.: Mass at the Rosary Basilica
3 p.m.: Rosary at the Grotto – broadcast on Lourdes+
5.30 p.m.: Mass at the Rosary Basilica
8.30 p.m.: Torchlight Rosary – broadcast on Lourdes+
10 p.m.: Ukrainian religious songs to the Virgin Mary at the Grotto – broadcast on Lourdes+
11 p.m.: Mass at the Grotto to mark the end of the Jubilee Year of Mercy, presided over by Mgr. Jean-Marc Micas, Bishop of Tarbes and Lourdes – broadcast on Lourdes+
Programme for 1st January 2026:
10 a.m.: Mass at the Grotto – broadcast on Lourdes+
11.15 a.m.: Mass at the Rosary Basilica
3 p.m.: .Rosary for peace at the Grotto – broadcast on Lourdes+
5.30 p.m.: Mass at the Rosary Basilica
6.30 p.m.: Vespers at the Rosary Basilica
8.30 p.m.: Torchlight Rosary – broadcast on Lourdes+
Title: 1st January: Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God
On 1st January, one week after Christmas, the Church invites us to enter the New Year by reflecting on Mary, Mother of God, and praying with her in a worldwide call for Peace.
In Lourdes, Mary shines with a light that neither starts nor ends with her. It shines through her just like a stained-glass window makes the light sing and then it reaches us, alive and glorious.
In Lourdes, we pray to Mary, Mother of God
Since 11th February 1858, the date of the first apparition of the Virgin Mary to Bernadette Soubirous, the people of God have been praying continuously to the Mother of God.
It took the Church more than three centuries to shape the words we use and make them the core of her faith in Mary, Mother of God.
The second part of the Hail Mary continues this prayer to Mary, expressing the prayer of the Church. It opens with a true profession of faith: Holy Mary, Mother of God… In just a few words, addressed in prayer to Mary, they echo the essence of the angel’s greeting to Mary, and that of Elizabeth, which were at the heart of the contemplative prayer in the first part of the Hail Mary:
Hail Mary, full of grâce:
The Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou amongst women
And blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
Paray for us, sinners,
Now and at the hour of our death.
Amen
Holy Mary, Mother of God and World Day of Peace
Since 1968, the Catholic Church has celebrated the World Day of Peace on 1st January every year. On this day, the Pope presents a message in which he expresses his concerns and wishes for the future.
The theme chosen by Pope Leo XIV for World Peace Day 2026 is: ‘Peace be with you all. Towards a disarmed and disarming peace.’
World Peace Day on 1st January 2026, with the theme ‘Peace be with you all. Towards a disarmed and disarming peace’, invites us to rediscover peace as a gift to be welcomed and a responsibility to be embraced. This message calls for inner disarmament – of hearts, words and attitudes – to open paths to genuine reconciliation. It encourages everyone, individuals and nations alike, to renounce the logic of fear and domination in order to build a humble, courageous and lasting peace based on dialogue, justice and friendship.
