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 Centennial of the Apparition Of The Holy Virgin At Lourdes Scott 233-238 (1958) The Feast Day of Our Lady of Lourdes is celebrated on February 11. It commemorates the appearance of the Blessed Virgin Mary to a young girl in France. Saint Bernadette Soubirous (1844-1879) was a visionary and later a nun with the Sisters of Notre-Dame of Nevers. She experienced eighteen visions of the Virgin Mary at the rock of Massabielle, Lourdes, from February 11 to July 16, 1858. "The Lady" who appeared to Bernadette described herself as the Immaculate Conception, and directed Bernadette to have a church built on the site and to drink the water from a nearby spring. Once dug out, the spring thereafter produced 27,000 gallons of water weekly. The Blessed Mother stressed prayer and penance. Visits to Lourdes flourished in subsequent years, and the pilgrimage movement to the site has become the largest in Europe. Many visitors to Lourdes have been cured of various illnesses through its waters. Bernadette was canonized in 1933 due to her total commitment and trust to the vision she encountered. The story of Saint Bernadette was made into a movie in 1943, entitled "The Song of Bernadette", based on the novel written by Franz Werfel. Both the book and movie were very popular, with the movie being nominated for eleven Academy Awards and winning three, including the Best Actress Award won by Jennifer Jones for her portrayal of Bernadette. For more on Lourdes, click on today's Page 2 link.   Apparition Of The Virgin Mary At Lourdes 150th Anniversary, Scott 1388M and 1389M (minisheets) (2008) REFERENCES: |
