April 21, 2017
Our Lady of Lourdes: The Journey of Saint Bernadette
Saint Bernadette of Lourdes stands as an admirable female religious leader in the Catholic faith. The Church recognizes her as a Saint due to her devotion to the faith and the apparitions of the Virgin Mary that came to her and the miraculous state in which her body remained after her death. From her birth in the mid-19th century (1844), Bernadette Soubirous battled illness her entire life. In addition to Cholera, Bernadette also suffered greatly from asthma starting at a young age. Her childhood did not make up for the health struggles she faced. Instead, she “suffered the harsh and laborious conditions of a child servant.” At the age of thirteen, Bernadette was sent to a family in Bartès, France to work as their shepherdess. The mother of the house, Marie Laguës, promised to send Bernadette to school; however, that meant that no one would be present to herd the sheep and thus Marie taught Bernadette herself. Marie’s homeschool teaching did not succeed and left Bernadette to fend for herself when it came to learning. To get through the days, Bernadette relied heavily on her faith. She taught herself the rosary and constantly prayed to the Virgin Mary. In various sects of Christianity, the Virgin Mary is not idolized as much as she is in the Catholic faith. Much debate has existed around the Blessed Virgin, but “the Church believes that Mary is the human link, who, by reason, of her free choice to bear the Savior was the human agent through whom salvation came into the world.” Through these teachings, Bernadette became extremely invested in the Virgin Mary; she carried a rosary with her wherever she travelled.
At the age of 18, on a journey to gather firewood, Bernadette saw the Virgin Mary for the first time; however, at the time, she was unaware the woman was Mary. On her walk to the grotto, “a young girl dressed in white” appeared in front of Bernadette and urged her to take her rosary out and give herself the sign of the cross. The image eventually disappeared and Bernadette immediately felt stronger and not nearly as frail or in as much pain as she usually experienced. When she reached the other side of the Gave to meet her siblings, she asked them if they saw anything to which they responded that they did not. While gathering the firewood, Bernadette continued glancing at the grotto to gain a perspective of what had occurred. After a few moments, Bernadette told one of her sisters what she had seen, but she did not believe her. Throughout the following week, Bernadette saw the apparition twice more. Beginning on February 19th, Bernadette devoted time everyday for two weeks to visit the grotto in hopes of seeing the figure. At the beginning of the two weeks, crowds of townspeople joined her to see the image, but they could never see the apparition. This led to the people of Lourdes to gossip about her and referred to her so-called apparitions as “fakery” and “foolishness”. Even through the criticism, Bernadette’s faith remained strong. At this point in time, Bernadette began learning the catechism in preparation for her First Communion and travelled to the grotto less and less. By the end of March, on “the vigil of the Annunciation” Bernadette felt a strong desire to visit the grotto once again. It was during this apparition that the lady exposed herself as the Immaculate Conception. Once word spread that Bernadette claimed to see the Immaculate Conception, she was sent to medical professionals to observe “symptoms of nervous disorder” and some questioned if she should be placed in jail or an asylum. In contrast, however, many believed and supported Bernadette’s visions and relationship with the Virgin. The controversy circulating throughout the town about the apparitions and Bernadette’s well-being led her to take the vocation of a Sister of Charity in Nevers.
Years later in 1864, Bernadette was accepted into the Sisters of Charity in Nevers and began her journey to become a nun. While studying with the Sisters, Bernadette fell ill multiple times and was unable to continue practicing. When she felt strong enough she ventured again to the Sisters, but consequently relapsed and struggled for months to gain her strength and health. In her final decade of life, Bernadette officially became a Sister of the Sisters of Charity in Nevers. While in Nevers, Bernadette worked with physically ill peoples and prayed with them to the Blessed Virgin of Lourdes for healing. While Bernadette herself never received true healing from the Virgin, she found that praying to Her for others’ healing, helped a great deal.
In her final days, she remained bed-ridden and struggled to breathe; however, until her dying day, she strived to “thank the Virgin to the very end”. Whether others supported her or not, Bernadette remained a true follower and believer of the Blessed Virgin Mary and stayed true to her faith. Bernadette’s body was exhumed from her grave a total of three times before she officially was beatified or became a saint. It was found through the exhumations that her body had not decayed in the usual way a body normally should. It is extremely peculiar to mention “her body remains incorrupt to this day” and is on display at Saint-Gildard’s Convent. Her face, not yet completely skeletal, “has been covered with a thin layer of wax” in order to create a more formal and respectful presentation of Saint Bernadette’s body. She was canonized as saint on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception on December 8, 1933. Throughout her entire life, Bernadette exemplified true compassion for her faith and others.
Even through intense ridicule, Saint Bernadette never ceased to believe in herself and in her faith. The Catholic faith focuses heavily on sainthood and the idea that each Christian is destined for saintliness. In traditional belief, “the Catholic Church invites us to look around our own contemporary world to seek out models who live exemplary self-giving lives who best show for the deepest meaning of the gospel life.” If you look back on the life that Saint Bernadette lived, she truly exemplified one whom was self-giving and showed her love for the gospel through her work in ministry and the respect for the Immaculate Conception. To this day, many Catholics visit the grotto in Lourdes as a popular pilgrimage site. Many Christians see Saint Bernadette of Lourdes as a “beacon in the night”, especially to those who are sickly and ill. Saint Bernadette persevered through weakness and ill health to stay faithful and strong. She continued to praise the Blessed Virgin and the Church until the day that she died.
Saint Bernadette is an extraordinary female religious leader in the Catholic Church because, during a time when women could easily be locked away in prison or an asylum, she continued to stay true to her word. She constantly battled non-believers and was questioned by multiple leaders of Lourdes, but she persisted in faith. In addition, during the 19th century, women did not have many rights within the Catholic Church, but Saint Bernadette showed her leadership and strength which allowed her to become an admirable woman within the Catholic faith.