Category Bereavment

Christelle, accepting the unacceptable

Christelle, accepter l'inacceptable
Quentin, Christelle's son killed himself aged 21. Christelle discovered Montligeon three years ago and came back in November 2023 to entrust her son to the Shrine's prayer. She told us her story and how she managed to accept the unacceptable.

Should you attend the cremation of a loved-one?

Nowadays, cremation has become commonplace. Is cremation forbidden by the Church? What is its meaning? Should we attend the cremation of a loved-one? Christian de Cacqueray, the founder of the Catholic Service of Funerals, gives his point of view.

Loosing a brother or a sister

Le deuil d'un frère, témoignage d'Amélie
"How are your parents?" was the question Amélie heard when her younger brother Dominique died in a car accident. Are you not allowed to be sad and to suffer when you loose your brother?

Recovering from grief

Comment aller mieux après un deuil ?

Bérangère and Stéphane have both suffered the bereavement of someone close to them. We met them at Montligeon on All Saints’ Day. They talked to us about death and gave us their advice on how to get better after bereavement.…

How can we relate to our deceased?

Quel lien avec notre défunt ? Enseignement de soeur Cécile
The physical, sensitive bond with our loved-ones gets violently shattered when they die. When such destructive power hits, what then remains of our ties with the deceased?

The benefits of mass for the deceased

Les biensd
Viviane lost all her siblings, especially her twin brother. She remains the only believer in her family. She recounts how a mass celebrated for her deceased brother brought her peace.

When grief turns to anger

Josiane
When her son dies of cancer, Josiane is angry. She recounts how she was soothed by a mourning break at Montligeon.

How can we overcome the death of a friend?

Perdre un ami
Mourning a family member is commonly accepted. This is much less the case when it's a friend. What is the nature of this penalty? Don Thomas Lapenne's answer on RCF's Sanctuaires normands program.

“Beyond death, resurrection” by Cardinal Ambongo

Cardinal Ambongo : "Au delà de la mort, il y a la résurrection"
The Archbishop of Kinshasa, Fridolin Cardinal Ambongo, was interviewed by Radio Maria Congo on 12 November 2023. For him, the shrine of Montligeon epitomizes the place where to be in communion with our brothers and sisters who have entered into the great mystery of death.

A space to take mourning into account, interview of Damien Le Guay

Damien Le Guay, philosophe, est vice-président du Comité national d'éthique du funéraire
Damien Le Guay stresses the importance of experiencing bereavement as a spiritual experience that encompasses both the religious and the psychic. He advocates for opening up spaces in society so that the psychic reality of bereavement can be fully acknowledged.