There's More Epiphany Masses! Hot off the Press

 By moi-même - Own work, GFDL,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=7948764

 The shrine and apparitions of Our Lady in Laus, France, are not well known. Our Lady of Laus  (the Refuge of Sinners) (French: Notre-Dame du Laus) denotes Marian apparitions that took place between 1664 and 1718 in Saint-Étienne-le-Laus, France to Benoite Rencurel, a young shepherdess. 


They were approved by the Holy See on May 5, 2008, as worthy of belief. For a short history of the occurrences, see:-

Michael Matt, from the Remnant wrote about the shrine and message of Laus back in 1995, he states:-

"Most of us, however, had never before even heard of the message or apparitions of Notre Dame Du Laus. Even most Catholics in France have not heard of Notre Dame Du Laus. Why? Because our Lady's message to Benoite, aside from being filled with great hope, also had another aspect to it—an aspect that is anything but popular to the Church in the modern world. The message placed a tremendous amount of emphasis on the dangers of sin, the importance of repentance, the absolute "essential to salvation" nature of the Sacrament of Penance, and the necessity of receiving that Sacrament frequently. During the lifetime of Benoite, and for centuries after her death, Laus was a place of great spiritual healing through the Sacrament of Penance. An incredible number of Catholics from every class (peasantry, gentry, and nobility) over the centuries since 1647 found their way back onto the road that leads to salvation, as a direct consequence of the message of Notre Dame Du Laus and the sanctity of the seer Benoite, who proclaimed that message to the world.....

Rencurel was born on 16 September 1647 to a peasant family near the village of Laus in the Diocese of Grenoble, France. Her father died when she was seven years old, and this resulted in great poverty and misery in the home of the widow. Madame Rencurel did not marry again, but devoted herself entirely to the care of her three daughters. In order to ensure that Benoite would have at least sufficient food to eat, she sent her to work as a shepherdess at the age of 12.

While looking after her sheep, Benoite loved to say her Rosary. By the time that she reached the age of 13, she took the Gospel very seriously, and when her village was in great misery due to poor harvests, she would deprive herself of food and give her bread to younger children who were starving.

On one occasion, two carters, notorious for their evil lives, attempted to take advantage of Benoite's youth and innocence. Rather than even allow them to draw near her, she risked her life by fleeing into a dangerous marsh. It remained firm beneath her feet, but when the carters attempted to follow her, they began to sink immediately and had to struggle back to dry land. Our Lady protects those whom she has selected for a great work.

In 1664, at the age of 17, Benoite was looking after her sheep in the Vallon (valley) des Fours near the village of St. Etienne (St. Stephen) when an unknown lady appeared to her. It seems that Our Lady had wished to make herself known to the shepherdess without revealing her true identity all at once. She would behave in precisely the same way to St. Bernadette at Lourdes. Benoite felt very attracted to the lady. And she returned each day to the Vallon des Fours. Our Lady wished to deepen the spiritual life of Benoite, and in order to teach her to be totally generous she asked the girl for her goat. Benoite was exceptionally attached to the animal, which she looked after almost as a pet. Despite the affection which she felt for the lady, Benoite refused to give it to her. She had not yet reached the stage of spiritual development where she was willing to renounce everything.

The unknown lady revealed her name to Benoite during the final apparition in the Vallon des Fours: "I am the Lady Mary," she told the shepherdess.

Benoite now had a great love for Our Lady and spoke to her with great sincerity. Our Lady revealed herself to the shepherdess in all her glory, resplendent in light, but without frightening her. During this apparition Benoite was scarcely able to see the face of the Blessed Virgin—so brightly was it shining.

Our Lady said to Benoite: "If you wish to see me again, go to Laus. You will find there a chapel from which a beautiful perfume comes." The day following this apparition Benoite went to Laus and soon came upon the scent of an exquisite perfume coming from the neglected Chapel of the Bon Rencontre ("Happy Meeting"). She crept inside, and on its dusty altar she saw her beloved Lady Mary once more. She immediately offered her apron to protect the feet of the Blessed Virgin from the dust.

Our Lady now had complete confidence in Benoite and began to reveal the mission which she was to entrust to the shepherdess. "I have asked my Son to give me Laus, and He has agreed," explained the Virgin. She told Benoite that it was her dearest wish that men should be brought to understand the love which God offered them. Benoite came to the chapel frequently during that winter (1644-1645). Our Lady continued to educate her and asked her to pray for those who lived badly, so that they would turn in repentance to her Son.

By this time, news of the apparitions had spread throughout the region, and people everywhere spoke of the visions of Benoite. In the Spring of 1665, many pilgrims came to Laus, and writings of the period testify to the fact that more than fifty sick and infirm people were cured within a few months. It was soon discovered that cures took place frequently when pilgrims who prayed with true fervor were anointed with oil from the sanctuary lamp in the chapel. (That oil is still available in the Basilica at Laus for pilgrims who request it.)

Our Lady had asked Benoite to pray for sinners, but now she went even further and asked her to speak to them individually and to tell them to open themselves to God's forgiveness. Our Lady would beg the pilgrims to Laus to confess themselves, and thanks to her pleading many of them, both men and women, underwent a change, of heart and reconciled themselves with God in the Sacrament of Penance. Our Lady's plan had been realized, and now she said to Benoite: "I wish to have a church built here where many will be converted."

A beautiful church was built to accommodate the vast throngs of pilgrims, and it incorporated the entire Chapelle de Bonne Rencontre. The new church was called Notre Dame du Laus. Once, during a vision, two saints were sent by Our Lady to Benoite to offer her a choice between two crowns. The first crown was of roses, the symbol of an easy and pleasant life of peace and happiness. The second crown was of thorns. It signified the renouncement of self and a lifetime of difficulties and suffering which would be encountered whenever she attempted to serve God and her neighbors. Benoite had no hesitation in choosing the second path, upon which she had already set foot, and accepted the crown of thorns offered to her by St. Catherine of Sienna.

On one occasion, while praying before a life-size crucifix, the Chris d'Avancon, the love that Benoite felt for her crucified Savior grew so profound that she longed ardently to be united with Him in the sufferings that He endured for the salvation of sinners. From that day onward, for nine years, from Thursday evening until Saturday morning, she was overcome by a painful ecstasy, in which she experienced in her own body the Passion of Our Lord....Benoite died on 28 December 1718, in the 72nd year of her life. She departed form this earth in complete lucidity, her face radiant with joy. At 8 o'clock in the evening, she was reunited with the "Fair Lady" who, fifty-four years earlier, had first summoned her in the Vallon des Fours. She was buried in the basilica which had been built around the Chapel of the Bon Rencontre in order accommodate the vast crowds of pilgrims.

Although one of the lesser-known shrines of France, Laus is imbued with a special atmosphere not found in the commercialized nature of some of the better-known shrines. Laus was given by Our Lord to His Blessed Mother, and this can be sensed by all who come there. There is no souvenir shop, apart from a very modest one attached to the shrine, and the only commercial enterprise in the village is a small restaurant-bar belonging to a devout Catholic lady. It is dominated by a statue of Our Lady of Victories and was the venue for an impromptu concert of Latin hymns and popular songs sung by the 1995 Remnant pilgrims. All who come to Laus agree upon one thing—they found peace at Laus and they wish to return to that wonderful place again one day.

CONCLUSION

It is a matter of no small significance that the altar upon which Our Lady appeared to Benoite has been preserved unchanged, and that the Tridentine Mass, the only Mass known to Benoite, returned to that altar for the first time in years when it was celebrated for The Remnant pilgrims on June 7, 1995.

For, although the priests who care for the shrine at Laus today do not have permission to say the Tridentine Mass, they are sincerely orthodox and have obvious dedication and devotion to traditional Catholicism. One is left with the realization that somehow the Revolution in the Church never quite made it up into the mountains as high as Laus. Laus is being protected once again, even in our own age. There is a pre-Revolution peace that manifests itself everywhere at Laus, and it is plain to see that Catholicity reigns supreme high in the hills of Mary's special Refuge of Sinners.

Perhaps a concerted effort could be made by Catholics everywhere to make known to as many people as possible word of the Basilica of Laus, which Pope Leo XIII elevated to a minor basilica on March 18, 1893, or word of the holy seer Benoite Rencurel, whom the saintly Pope Pius IX proclaimed "Venerable Servant of God" on October 16, 1872, or word of the tremendous message of contrition, penance and hope that was revealed at the little mountaintop hamlet of Laus by the Queen of Heaven and Earth, our Blessed Mother, Mary-Notre Dame Du Laus.

Our Lady of Laus, pray for us sinners who have recourse to thee!"

For the whole article see:- https://www.remnantnewspaper.com/Archives/archive-laus.htm.