TO THE PRESENT DAY
Great renown, innumerable pilgrimages and the presence and activities of the
Oratorian fathers all marked the life of the two sanctuaries of Cotignac right
up to the revolution. The profound history, that of graces received, remains
essentially here on earth the secret of souls and of God. The torment of the
French revolution was to cause upheaval to these sacred sites.
FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE POST WAR YEARS
In the revolutionary torment... :
At Cotignac, for more than two years, they forgot to administer to the Fathers
of Our Lady of Graces the famous oath - which was in fact an act of allegiance
to power and its ideology. The whole population of Cotignac did not want to
see the fathers leave at any price (their Parish Priest had already had to
leave).
It was at the end of 1792 that the delegates of the Convention of Barjols,
who held power, decided to put into effect, at the Sanctuaries of Cotignac,
the decisions taken against the Church in France: dissolution of the religious
communities and confiscation of the Church's property. Such was the end of
the of the pilgrimages of the XVIII th century.
Because of the iniquitous "law of suspects", between 160 and 200
people would soon be imprisoned in the ex-Oratorian monastery without trial,
without defence and maltreated, as recorded in the archives of Cotignac itself.
Thankfully, in July 1794, the fall of the ideological tyrant Robespierre enabled
them to be freed just before they were to be sent to Orange, where their names
would have been added to the list of victims of the revolution and its guillotine...
The statue and the painting saved by the young girls of Cotignac : In 1793, the two Sanctuaries had therefore been declared "national property"
that is: nationalised without compensation. From 1795, it was proposed to
sell them but there were delays. This is where our three heroines from Cotignac
come into the story: Rose, Euphrasine and Therese Gerard. These three sisters
decided to save what was left in the church of Our Lady (the Sanctuary having
already been stripped of its sacred vessels, chandeliers etc). One night,
they went into the church and took the painting and the statue (which was
very heavy) and hid their treasure in Cotignac. This is why we are still able
to see them today.
It was just in time, as the demolition of the buildings was about to commence.
They had been sold in lots to seven buyers as source of building materials.
The St. Joseph Sanctuary which was further away was saved from destruction
but nevertheless, time took its toll. When the walls of the church of Our
Lady were being knocked down, the commemorative plaque of Louis XIV was also
spirited away to the Gerard family but the royal coat of arms had already
been destroyed.
Pilgrimages recommence... : Napoleon' s concordat in 1801 re-established religious peace and created the
"Fabriques d'eglise" or Church Property Commissioners to be the
owners of the properties which the State wished to restore to the Church (basically
the Churches and Presbyteries).
At Cotignac, in 1809, the general wish of the population was that the Sanctuary
of Our Lady should be re-built, in accordance with the terms of the act passed
with the "Fabrique d'eglise" of Cotignac, by which the seven owners
(including the Mayor) graciously restored the land. This took place as a result
of a memorable preaching mission. Organised by father Gal, who had returned
from exile, the 'Fabrique' soon received enough donations for work to start
on the reconstruction (February 1810). They did not reconstruct the right
transept and, without waiting for the works to be finished, a huge cortege
went up to celebrate the birth of the Virgin Mary on the hill: The impressive
chapel was restored to the Church, the miraculous painting restored to its
place and the statue reinthroned just as they can be seen today (the Louis
XIV plaque was also replaced). There was great emotion in Cotignac; the memory
of this day in 1811 was retained and, each year, the feast of the 8th September
reminds us of it.
Circumstances have changed :
Would the pilgrimages start again as before? Firstly, there was not a tree
left standing around the church and there was just debris underfoot. In addition,
access to the summit of the hill had become very difficult. Lastly, and importantly,
there were no longer any permanent chaplains. The parish priest cannot do
everything and he is responsible to his parish - the two Sanctuaries must
come second. Certainly on feast days there were big pilgrimages but between
times, nothing. The problem was not resolved until after the second World
War.
The period from the 3rd Republic was specially noted at Cotignac for a strong
anti-Christian feeling. In 1946, seven out of ten burials were civil.
AFTER THE LAST WAR:
THE RETURN OF THE RELIGIOUS COMMUNITIES : In 1938, for the 300th anniversary of the Vow of Louis XIII, the Sanctuary
had been restored and the hilltop cleared to make way for the 30,000 pilgrims
awaited. On the day of the anniversary, the 7th August, there were double
that number. It was on that day that the painting and the statue received
their crowns.
After the celebration, more than ever, people were anxious to restore a religious
community to the hill but the war delayed everything. The Oblation fathers
arrived in 1946.
The work that the Oblation fathers did for Our Lady and St. Joseph and their
pilgrims was remarkable. In 1950, the gilded statue of Our Lady made a journey
to Rome, on the proclamation of the Dogma of the Assumption. In its honour,
on 14th August, a celebration was organised at the church of Saint Louis des
Francais, in the presence of 48 Bishops and Cardinals.
With the youth of Cotignac, the fathers - pick axes in hand - soon took on
the necessary heavy works. Firstly, it was the piping of water to the top
of the hill (years 1953 -54). Lastly, up to '56 the construction of the road
by which you can reach the sanctuary by car and which up to 1978 had not yet
been metalled. It was the renewal of Cotignac.
Then came the Brothers of Saint John.
Apparitions of Our Lady
Our Lady of Graces and the birth
of Louis XIV
The apparition of St Joseph
