Today, December 12th is the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
The Blessed Virgin Mary appeared under this title in Mexico on December 9 and December 12, 1531.
I’d like to share facts about this event in honor of her feast.
“Know, know for sure, my dearest, littlest, and youngest son, that I am the perfect and ever Virgin Holy Mary, Mother of the God of truth through Whom everything lives, the Lord of all things near us, the Lord of heaven and earth…” ~ Our Lady of Guadalupe
In my previous post, I gave descriptions of the first nine apparitions in Lourdes.
The Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to Bernadette Soubirous eighteen times in the Grotto of Massabielle.
The apparitions began on February 11th and ended on July 16th in the year 1858.
I arrived in Lourdes, France on July 31st and left on August 6th.
(I learned that Lourdes is pronounced “Lourd” in French.)
It was a special experience that I’m grateful for. It still seems surreal that God permitted us to go!
I’d like to share an article that my dad recently shared with me.
It’s about the 70th official Lourdes miracle recognized by the Catholic Church. The miracle was approved on February 11th — the World Day of the Sick and Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes — of 2018.
It’s the most recent official miracle to date and an encouraging true story!
From May to October 1917, the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to three shepherd children in Fátima, Portugal.
The Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to a poor teenage girl named Bernadette Soubirous on February 11, 1858.
Between February 11th and July 16th, she appeared eighteen times in the Grotto of Massabielle near Lourdes, France.
Several years ago, I was reading about the events in Lourdes and discovered these words from the Blessed Mother to Bernadette:
“I do not promise you happiness in this world, but in the next.”
When I read those words, they pierced my soul.
From that moment on, I’ve felt a strong connection to St. Bernadette and Our Lady of Lourdes.
Even though I never seriously considered going to Lourdes, something changed recently.
