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!
“All will be right with time and a little patience.” ~ St. Mary MacKillop
I wrote a post about waiting last year. At that time, I was in a personal situation that required patience.
Well, I’m still in a period of waiting and being asked to practice patience at this very moment!
So, I’d like to share this post with you again. If you read the original post, I recommended re-reading it here.
Waiting is a reality each of us can relate to, and there is often a lesson waiting for us…
In my post Lourdes: a Place of Healing and Grace, I wrote about my desire to go to Lourdes, France this summer. It seems God is allowing my desire to become a reality…
Today, May 31st, the Church celebrates the Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
At the Annunciation, the angel Gabriel visits Mary and says she’s been chosen to bear the Son of God. He also says that her relative Elizabeth, who was considered barren, is in the sixth month of her pregnancy.
Immediately after hearing this news, Mary travels to visit Elizabeth. This is known as the Visitation.
First, we’ll look at the Gospel account of the Visitation.
Then, I’ll share four lessons from this significant event.
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.
“All the true children of God, the predestinate, have God for their Father, and Mary for their Mother.” ~ St. Louis de Montfort
My paternal grandfather loved photography and was a photographer by trade. There’s one photo in particular that’s very special to him and my family.
Grandpa and Grandma used to visit a Marian shrine near their home. During one visit, Grandpa photographed a statue of Mary.
The statue was positioned near the doorway of the chapel, which made it difficult to photograph.
He said there was no way to capture the photo without getting “hot spots” — shiny glares — on the statue’s face. (In those days, photography wasn’t digital and couldn’t be edited the way it is today.)
He tried his best, assuming hot spots would be visible when the film was developed…
