During the pilgrimage of the relics, you may remain in constant contact with the Grotto.
Praying the rosary, entrusting prayer petitions to the Sanctuary’s chaplains, requesting masses to be said, and for candles to be lit at the Chapels of Light, opposite the Grotto. You may also make a donation for the missions and work of the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes.
Saints are above all witnesses of Faith.
Kissing or touching a reliquary is not magic, but a gesture of attachment to that Faith. It is an act of belonging to the people of God. We put ourselves in the footsteps of that Saint, a seeker of God who has given an example that inspires us to follow his or her spiritual journey.
Relics are "remains" of someone who truly existed. We are not simply in front of a symbol or an image, but in front of a reminder that from the day of our baptism, we Christians have become a temple of the Holy Spirit, inhabited by God.
The veneration of a relic is not a question of attaching undue importance to the physical material, but to what it represents. The worship of saints must be subordinate to their prayer and their example, so that they intercede with God on our behalf.
Moreover, the reliquary is in no way a monstrance or a tabernacle and it is not placed on, but next to or near the altar, so that it becomes unambiguous that the saint we venerate is a relay of our prayer to the Father.
