In 1812, the chapel and the cemetery were put up for sale. Buyer: Louis Vanden Berghe de Binckum. In 1816, he had the chapel closed and destined for demolition. There was a lot of protest from the pastor, the mayor, the notary, the diocese and the Minister of Religious Affairs. But they were powerless because Vanden Berghe de Binckum did not want to sell the chapel to the municipality. The chapel was demolished by a team of workers. The report of the first three days of demolition work was preserved in the “demolition letters”. The population watched helplessly. The tomb of the two virgins was desecrated, the bones scattered. Only a few bones could later be transferred to the parish church. They now rest in the new chapel. Fortunately, the miraculous statue and a large part of the contents were saved.
There is no trace left, neither of the old chapel nor of the cemetery. The construction of the new chapel could start in 1890 on land donated by Count Everard de T’Serclaes, the then lord of the castle. The grandchildren of the former demolition of the chapel contributed financially. The chapel was not built on exactly the same spot as the old chapel. But in very close proximity (on the cemetery that surrounded the previous chapel). The chapel was solemnly consecrated on 8 June 1891 by Cardinal Goossens, Archbishop of Mechelen.
That Lubbeek is a living place of pilgrimage becomes clear when you see the almost 300 memorial plaques or ex votos that commemorate Mary’s benefits from 1893 to the present. The memorial plaques point out the varied origins of the pilgrims (some come from Brussels, West Flanders, London) and the variety of favours: healings, blindness, paralysis, passing exams, protection during the war… There are some plaques in French, English and even Latin.
Source: educational information column (on site) and accompanying teacher's folder