St. Bernadette Soubirous of Lourdes

St. Bernadette Soubirous of Lourdes
St. Bernadette Soubirous is the renowned visionary of Lourdes. She was born into a poor family in Lourdes, France, in 1844 and was baptized with the name Mary Bernard.
Mother Mary first appeared to the 14-year-old Bernadette Feb. 11, 1858, in a cave on the banks of the Gave River near Lourdes. The visions continued for several weeks. Two weeks later, a spring emerged from the cave and the waters were found to miraculously heal the sick and the lame. One month later, March 25, the vision told Bernadette that she was the Immaculate Conception and that a church should be built on the site.
Civil authorities tried to frighten Bernadette into retracting her accounts, but she remained faithful to the visions. They also tried to shut down the spring and delay construction, but Empress Eugenie of France intervened and the church was built.
In 1866, Bernadette entered the Sisters of Notre Dame in Nevers. She was diagnosed with a painful, incurable illness soon afterward and died in 1879 at the age of 35. Pope Pius XI canonized her in 1933.
catholicnewsagency.com

Tags: Banks, civil authorities, Delay Construction, immaculate conception, Incurable Illness, Lourdes France, march 25, Mother Mary, Nevers, notre dame, Pope Pius, Sisters Of Notre Dame, st bernadette soubirous, Visionary, Visions

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