Turn the World Upside Down

Recently I visited Lourdes. I know that there are some readers who have regularly made a pilgrimage to this extraordinary little town in the south of France. I know there are others who long to, but may never have the opportunity.

As I arrived with my recently widowed mother, I noticed that there has been a pattern to my own visits. I went three times as a zealous teenager (I was living fairly nearby, in the UK); then again 20 years later as a Jesuit novice; and now 20 years after that as a much older man.

The impact, though, has been the same each time: a sense of stepping out of the ordinary world into a place which is as close to heaven on earth as we might expect to see. On the surface this might seem to be because of the beautiful churches — basilica built on top of basilica, reflecting different styles of architecture and hosting magnificent religious art.

Or it might be because of the serenity of being in the midst of tens of thousands of people of all nations praying side by side. It is partly the gorgeous setting, with the Pyrenean mountains all around and the fast-flowing river Gave de Pau right next to the grotto. And this is all enhanced by the presence of seemingly millions of candles burning everywhere.

The real power of Lourdes

But for me, the real reason that this is heaven on earth is because it completely overturns the priorities of the world. Here it is not the rich or the powerful or the well-connected who are the priority. It is the weak, the disabled, the elderly, the sick.

Priority is not given to the BMW or the car with the flashing blue lights, but to the simple wheelchair or the rickshaw being pulled by keen young volunteers. Even the priests and bishops seem to conduct themselves with more humility in Lourdes (not something I have ever noticed in Rome!).

Readers may recall a catchy modern hymn with the refrain, “And the new life you give, is what’s turning the world upside down”. The reference is to Isaiah 24:1, but more so to Acts 17:6 where it is used as an accusation against Paul and Silas by the people of Thessalonica for having disturbed their nice orderly city (and their nice comfortable lives).

That is what the Gospel of Christ does — it turns the world upside down. And if Christ has not turned your personal world upside down, then you may do well to read the Gospel more closely.

Lourdes draws so many pilgrims because of Mary’s appearance 165 years ago to an impoverished, illiterate 14-year-old shepherdess. Mary’s choice of Bernadette Soubirous — and similarly unlikely candidates at her appearances in Fatima, Medjugorje and other sites — is clearly an echo of the canticle that Luke has Mary proclaim at the beginning of his Gospel: “He has set down the mighty from their thrones and raised up the lowly.”

Lourdes led the way

Because of the tradition of miracles of healing, Lourdes is especially a draw to people suffering from all kinds of physical ailments, and that is why the whole place is designed to accommodate those wheelchairs. Long before the rest of the world noticed the importance of this — and South Africa is still shamefully behind — Lourdes had embraced the principle of being accessible.

By contrast, I recall a religious order in South Africa which had spent a fortune on a very fancy new pastoral centre and had completely ignored the needs of wheelchair users in designing it. One afternoon spent by the superior with an opinionated friend of mine with a disability prompted him to retrospectively make the necessary alterations.

But it is not just the physical ways in which Lourdes welcomes everyone; it is also the attitudes of everyone there. This means that even if someone is suffering from the most physically awkward or ugly condition, they know that they are welcome not only in the churches but also in the bars and hotels that surround them.

But why do we have to go to Lourdes to experience this? We pray every day that the Father’s will be done “on earth as it is in heaven”. Is it only in a special pilgrimage site thousands of kilometres away that we can show the world what heaven on earth might look like? Of course not. We have a chance in every one of our parishes, if only we have the will to prioritise this.

However, sadly we do not. SA Sign Language has just been declared our 12th official language and we are used to seeing signing on TV, at national events and even at the theatre. But have you ever seen signing at Mass?

I once asked a bishop why not a single one of the dozen churches in the centre of his major city offered a regular Sunday Mass with sign interpretation. And his answer was: “Well, it’s not needed, because deaf people don’t come to church.” He seemed oblivious to the idea that deaf people were not coming because they would not be able to follow what was happening, or that deaf Catholics were instead going to other churches which were more welcoming.

A checklist for parishes

So let me offer the start of a checklist which every parish can consider if we want to fulfil Pope Francis’ words: “That the Church should be the place that welcomes everyone and refuses no one.”

• Do you (in collaboration with other parishes in the area) offer a regular sign-interpreted Mass?
• Do you use a projector to show every part of the Mass so that someone who cannot hear well can participate fully?
• Do you have an induction loop to assist people with hearing aids?
• Is your church (and your toilet) accessible to people in wheelchairs?
• Do people in wheelchairs have a “place of honour” in the church, or are they shunted off to the side or made to feel awkward?
• Has a blind or poorly-sighted person advised you on how to remove inadvertent obstacles in your church and surrounding precinct?
• Is your congregation welcoming to people with learning difficulties, no matter how they behave or what sounds they might make?
• Does your church take the trouble to understand the needs of families with young children?
• Do you have a system for collecting those who lack transport so they can come to church, especially the elderly?
• Do you distribute Communion in a way that ensures that everyone can participate and no-one feels like an afterthought?
• Do you think about the needs of those who have poor eyesight in printing the bulletin and other notices?
• Is there someone on your parish pastoral council who has a disability and who can voice the needs of people with disabilities?

None of this is rocket science. Very little of it is expensive to implement. It is mostly about noticing the needs of others and prioritising those — which after all is what the Gospel challenges us to do. The rest of society may not do this but that is why our Christian witness can be so powerful.

As a deaf priest and friend of mine once said: “It is not my ears that disable me; it is the thoughtless behaviour and attitudes of others that disable me.” Let’s turn the world upside down!

Dr Raymond Perrier will deliver his Doctoral Lecture on the Role of Laity in the Modern Church, drawing on lessons from the life of Paddy Kearney, on October 30 at St Michael’s parish in Rondebosch, Cape Town. Dr Perrier is the Director of the Denis Hurley Centre in Durban and a regular columnist for The Southern Cross. RSVP Eugene at