Talking about miracles (2004) 9780852312827, 0852312822

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Dr Patrick Theillier Director, Lourdes Medical Bureau

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Dr Patrick Theillier Director, Lourdes Medical Bureau

“TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES” Foreword by Mer Jacques Perrier Bishop of Tarbes and Lourdes

Written by Dr Patrick Theillier Published by Redemptorist Publications Copyright © 2003 Redemptorist Publications Alphonsus House Chawton Hampshire GU34 3HQ www.ShineOnline.net

A Registered Charity limited by guarantee Registered in England 3261721 First published in 2001 in France under the title “Et si on parlait des Miracles...” English translation by First Edition Translations Limited Cambridge

UK

ISBN 0 85231 282 2 Nihil Obstat: Canon Cyril Murtagh, M.A., S.T.L. Censor Deputatus Imprimatur: + Crispian Hollis Episcopus Portus Magni Portus Magni November 03 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission in writing from Redemptorist Publications. The authors assert their moral rights under the Copyright, Design and Patent Act, to be identified as the authors of this work.

This edition printed January 2004 Printed by Cambridge University Press

_”

Redemptorist PUBLICATIONS

To my children and grandchildren, in token of my love for each of you.

nan

Sige e moe

=

ts

, fa = one.

ee

—

i

CONTENTS Preface to the English translation Foreword

Introduction Miracles? Part of life!

1. Did you say “miracles”? “I felt life surging back into every part of me”

12

2. Do miracles still happen? “A phenomenon contrary to the expectations of medical science”

18

3. What is behind a miracle? “T had opened the door on an abyss”

29

4. Can we reconcile faith and science?

33

“We think we ought to share this miracle” 5. What God?

39

“Mind my business, and I'll mind yours”

6. Miracles: signs from God

46

“Let him send someone to rescue me”

7. God is close to us and loves us

a2

“... anote from the senior consultant to the effect that what had happened was unexplainable” 8. The miracles of the Bible

ey)

“And 1988 was a Year of Mary!” -9, The miracles of Jesus

65

“Do you ask him to cure you?” 10. Healing today “Many prayers were said for my recovery”

74

11. Healing the whole person “Lord, I love you...”

80

Conclusion Do you want to be cured?

88

Finding out more about Lourdes

2

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Preface

Preface to the English translation It will be helpful for the reader to know that this book is largely the fruit of a series of conversations which Dr Patrick Theillier has had with groups of young people who visit Lourdes. These are interspersed with narrative accounts of particular miracles or individual experiences. To make reading the conversations easier we have used different fonts, one for Dr Theillier and the other for the young people

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Foreword

Foreword Dr Patrick Theillier could be described as the “miracle doctor’ of Lourdes. He doesn’t perform miracles, but he sees all the patients who have undergone unexpected cures connected with the shrine. In a few cases, his investigations produce sufficiently precise data for the Church to recognise the cure as “miraculous”. However, Dr Theillier sees all sorts of cures, not only those submitted to a lengthy process of investigation. Physical cures, yes, but also healing of the mind, healing of personal relationships. Surely the reconciliation of a couple — a rare and demanding achievement — is just as much a miracle as the cures made possible by modern medicine? Like his predecessors, the author receives countless questions about miracles — from the media and the medical profession, but also from numerous groups of young people. We see more and more of the younger generation at Lourdes, intrigued by these extraordinary phenomena, but less sceptical than their elders. But Dr Theillier does not merely answer questions. This is what makes this book so fascinating. He explains how miracles — in the accepted sense of exceptional occurrences — reveal something about ordinary Christian faith, about God the Father, and humanity in general.

Interesting too is Dr Theillier’s exploration of the miraculous beyond the confines of Lourdes. The charismatic dimension of healing, long neglected by the Church, has been rediscovered by the Catholic Renewal Movement. At Lourdes, for over a century, people have not been content simply to record miracles; they need to reflect on their significance for the Church and the preaching of the Gospel. Other spiritual families can benefit from these reflections, just as

Lourdes can profit from the experiences of people elsewhere. After all, God remains free to act wherever he wishes.

Mer Jacques Perrier, Bishop of Tarbes and Lourdes.

TALKING ABOUT

MIRACLES

— Introduction

Acknowledgements Firstly, I offer my deepest gratitude to all of you who gave me your personal authorisation to publish your stories: Jean-Pierre Bély, Suzy

Lionel,

France

Garrand,

Roxanne’s

mother,

Jean-Luc,

Ségoléne, Michel Salefran, Marie-Amélie. May Our Lady Lourdes bring you special blessings, you and your families.

of

My gratitude is also due to Annick and Marie’s grandmother.

I am also considerably indebted to those who agreed to read my manuscript and encouraged me to publish it. Finally, a big and sincere “Thank you” to all the pilgrims who attend my lectures. Without them, this book would never have seen the light of day.

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Introduction

Introduction

Miracles? Part of life! “Anyone who doesn’t believe in miracles is not a realist.” David Ben Gourion Do miracles really exist? How can you prove a miracle? If they do exist, what could their purpose be? Are miracles no more than exceptions to the laws of nature or mere random events? Do cures still take place at Lourdes? If so, why isn’t every sick person cured ...? I’m asked the same things at the hundred or so lectures I give each year. To try and find answers, we have to agree to undertake a pilgrimage. A pilgrimage from the head to the heart; from our brain, whose business is to reason logically, to the place where it’s possible to hear a small voice whispering about things which don’t so much defy rational explanation as surpass it! My dear young reader (or not so young ...), you will, all the same, have to make a little effort: take your headphones off your ears, perhaps, and attach them to your heart! You might also allow yourself to be touched by the personal experiences presented here. Hopefully, it will persuade you that God is with you throughout your life, not to force you down a particular path, but as a friend; a demanding friend, maybe, but one on whom you can count come what may. What I’d love to show you is that miracles are signs to you, now, in the present, from God, and that healing, which we all need, is not

reserved for the privileged few.

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Introduction

This pilgrimage lasts all our lives. Travellers and pilgrims on this Earth, we are bound to ask ourselves some fundamental questions: “Who are we? Where do we come from? Where are we heading?” Miracles, of course, can throw light on these problems. For God, throughout our stay on earth, will take every opportunity to reveal himself to us, to make clear our origin and our final destiny, to show us the way ahead. To those who seek him, he gives signs. So, whether we wish it or not, miracles are part of our existence. The love of

God for humankind is the secret and the mystery of all life. You are not an unwanted addition to the world’s population. You are neither the result of chance nor the product of obscure forces controlling the behaviour of matter. Each of us is unique. Every human being is wanted by God. He or she has been created, given life, saved by him. Every life is a miracle; you are loved as you are, believer or not! This is the Good News of the Gospel, which is not some boring sermon, but God talking to me. I have to make it my own, seize it

with my entire being and, from the start, accept myself and love myself as I am, with all my good and bad qualities, all my past deeds ... glorious or otherwise! Beginning with a few concrete examples, I'd like to give you some reasons to believe; to rediscover that faith is not an ideological concept, that it is a living reality, that it frees us from fear and gives meaning to our existence. After all, it’s in the name of faith that the

largest gatherings of young people in history take place: the World Youth Days. And we’re talking about our very own times. Obviously, I can’t go into every detail about faith or miracles in a few chapters. And I am not going to talk about the Church; I know that a lot of people accept Christ, but not the Church. That is your choice. All I know is that, if an institution has a particular expertise

10

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Introduction

in humanity, it is the Church. What’s more, can you name another

human establishment that’s lasted for two thousand years, despite the errors and shortcomings of its members? That in itself is a real miracle! Nor am I going to tackle the vast subject of morality. Indeed, the word has had such a bad press that people now talk about “ethics” instead ... All T’ll say is this: morality has got to be something spiritual, rooted in love, the true love defined by Our Lord: “It is

more blessed to give than to receive.” This message is the opposite to that of today’s society, which would have us believe we can never be happy unless we’re going flat out to get our own way. Morality can best be defined as putting love into practice! Let me quote something which Bernadette of Lourdes used to say: “My task is to give you the message, not to make you believe it.” So don’t worry, I’ve no intention of trying to impose my ideas on you. My only aim is to encourage you to look further, to think things over for yourself, discuss them with your friends. This discussion we’re having, and a handful of first-hand accounts of

healing, will be the starting-point. It’s up to you to make the effort to read this little book right through with an open mind. I’m sure you will get something out of it: “Ask, and you will receive; seek, and you will find.” God trusts us and

leaves us free to choose; that is his divine strategy. If he wanted to “convince everyone, he would only have to put in an appearance and open his mouth! Which brings us straight to the question of why miracles take place ...

Vi

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Did you say “miracles”?

Chapter 1

Did you say ‘‘miracles’’? “A miraculous healing is nothing but a natural phenomenon whose scale and rapidity exceed the norms. A miracle multiplies, transforms or cures; it does not create. It surpasses the powers of nature, but never violates her laws. Her determinisms hold true; they are put to work, so to speak, by a higher form of free will which, by so mastering them, reveals itself to us in all its mystery.” Henri Bouillard - Could you tell us what a miracle is? - I'd prefer you to give me your own ideas first. In fact, there are all sorts of definitions of a miracle. The word is a minefield; people use it to mean all sorts of things ... Give me some examples. - OK then. For instance, when France scored in the last seconds of the Euro 2000 final, people said it was a miracle. - So they did! There are “miracles” every day on the sports pages! Gone - Nowadays, people talk about “miracle hormones” that stop you ageing, “miracle pills” for men who can’t manage to ... you know, any more. - Yes, ’'m with you. - There’s even a perfume called “Miracle”! - Well, at least it shows miracles are in fashion! So far, so good.

12

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Did you say “miracles”?

- It'd be amiracle ifI could get through my exams without dropping from exhaustion ...

- At least you’re wide awake now! Do you think it would be a miracle, though? For the moment, I’d rather talk about a “miracle solution”. True, we’d all love to find a miracle answer to our problems; we'd all like the impossible, or at least the unlikely, to happen. “If only I were brilliant at maths! If I could only find a cool-looking young guy who would inherit pots of money and keep me in luxury! If I could pass my exams without working! If only I could foretell the future! If I could win the Lottery! If, if, if ... That’s the way it is, isn’t it?

- You’re telling me.

- It’s only human to want the impossible. But are we talking about miracles? EV Velen

- No, not really. Do you honestly think you can be the handsomest, richest or most intelligent without lifting a finger? Do you think you can live without having any worries or problems, always be fit and in good health, stay young for ever? Is that possible? - No, of course not.

- And you run the risk of being conned by a whole lot of cunning people who’ll try and make you swallow it. A miracle isn’t just something astonishing. That’s why we need to go into this a bit more deeply. Now, what can we say is a real miracle? - For me, a miracle is when someone falls from the fifth floor and doesn’t get hurt. Yes, a miracle is something impossible,

13

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Did you say “miracles”?

completely unexpected. For example, during an earthquake, we’d say someone survived “tiraculously” if he was rescued after being buried under the ruins for several days.

- Not bad, Jean-Baptiste. But who says these are miracles? - They’re not miracles, then?

- Not necessarily ... Let’s look at your examples for a moment. What stands out most is luck, good fortune. Is a miracle simply luck, chance, good fortune, the incredible, the unexpected, the amazing? Is that enough? I think you know it isn’t. Of course, when the impossible happens, people say it’s a miracle. But who is in a position to say so? Basically, the person who benefits from it — and only that person. He or she may come to the conclusion that what has happened is in no way a miracle. What is the person to base that judgement on? On what he or she believes, deep down inside. Everything depends, in fact, on the person involved, and what — or who — he or she reckons is the cause of the “good luck”. When something startling happens, the question we can’t help asking is: What is behind it? What has caused this to happen? Every phenomenon, whatever it is, must have a cause. - True.

- What is “chance”? We need to ask ourselves that question, and everybody will have his or her own answer. Since the world began, whenever an extraordinary event has occurred, people have attributed it to some higher power, either on earth or in heaven. So they have involved the gods — or God. Then science wanted to understand everything it could about mysterious phenomena. We progressed from superstition to religion and finally to science, which is supposed to explain everything and solve all the mysteries. Do you follow me?

14

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Did you say “miracles”?

- If science can explain everything, miracles can’t exist any more.

- Agreed. But can science explain everything? Can you explain why you “miraculously” avoided an accident the other day? A piece of luck, you were going to say? But are you really satisfied with that explanation? - No, I’m not.

- Why? - Because I think there’s something else ...

- What? - I can’t tell you ... I have the impression “protected ...”

of having been ...

- Go on.

- Er, well ... of having been protected by some greater power. I’m trying to think ofa word for it ... A presence ... - Now, you see, we’re into religion. This is the very definition of a

miracle. It isn’t something amazing, nor a piece of magic, nor anything you can define scientifically. A miracle, by its own ‘definition, isn’t the impossible happening, but the recognition that such an event is linked to a divine power that wants the best for humankind. Whether we like it or not, true miracles are of a religious nature, and involve God.

- Can you prove that? - Well, we'll see ... As long as you stick with me all the way!

iS

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Did you say “miracles”?

“] felt life surging back into every part of me” S

Jean-Pierre Bély

“Born

two

24 August

1936,

I was

married

with

children

and

working as a nurse at the hospital in Angouléme. From 1972 I began to have neurological problems. In 1984 I was diagnosed as suffering from multiple sclerosis, a serious illness which is progressive and incurable. The doctors told me I had to give up work immediately. By February 1985, I was in a wheelchair. 1987 saw me very ill and bedridden, to the extent I was receiving 100 per cent disability benefits and needed a carer to help with all my everyday needs. At the start of October 1987, I was pushed by friends into making a pilgrimage to Lourdes. I hoped to receive the Lord’s forgiveness. I had always gone there with a great feeling of apprehension, but this time I experienced in the sacrament the love that sets us free.

The morning of the final day, I underwent the Anointing of the Sick, which they call the sacrament of life. At the moment when the priest anointed my forehead and hands, I felt everything around me start to spin. I suddenly lost all notion of time and space. The Lord had just healed my heart. I was invaded by a powerful sense of liberation and inner peace such as I had never experienced before. When I was taken back to my room, I began to feel cold inside; this feeling grew stronger and stronger, almost painful, and was spreading all over my body. I had the impression of falling into a sort of lethargy ... It was then that the sensation of cold gradually gave way to one of gentle warmth, starting from my toes; it too grew more intense and spread everywhere, rising throughout my body until it was like a fire. I felt life surging back into every part of me that had been paralysed by my illness. Suddenly, I couldn’t

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Did you say “miracles”?

say how, I found myself sitting on the edge of my bed, my legs hanging down, surprised I could move my arms and astonished to find myself regaining all my sensitivity and the suppleness of my skin and fingers.

The following night, though sleeping soundly, I woke up at three o'clock. An idea I had never dreamed of was creeping into my head, like an invitation: “Get up and walk!’ The urge became stronger and stronger. Finally, the duty nurse came over to me, seeing | appeared uncomfortable, and I told her I had to get up. She couldn’t believe her eyes; she was flabbergasted to see me walk. My first steps were hesitant, but I soon felt my legs grow firmer, even though they hadn’t worked since 1984 ... Next day, I left Lourdes. I was able to get into the train by myself and travel sitting on the seats. Since then, I have been like anyone else, leading a normal life. I have recovered the use of all my limbs but ... I’m still officially classed as disabled! It will take me longer than my lifetime to thank the Lord sufficiently.” Jean-Pierre Bély underwent twelve years of checks and investigations by numerous doctors. On 11 February 1999, he was finally recognised as the sixty-sixth person to be miraculously cured at Lourdes.

17

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Do miracles still happen?

Chapter 2 Do miracles still happen? “God sheds sufficient light on miracles for the believer to believe, but leaves enough shadow for the unbeliever not to!” Blaise Pascal - First, you’ll need to give us some instances of miracles.

- OK. I'll take those I know best, from Lourdes. - Do miracles still happen at Lourdes? - Sure, they still happen.

- They make great stories, isn’t that it? - If you like; the most wonderful stories possible. - Like in old tales?

- No, not like in old tales; these are true stories, the facts are real. We don’t hear much about the really wonderful things that go on in the world. The newspapers, radio, television spend most of the time telling us about things that aren’t in the slightest bit wonderful ... Things that are good, decent and worthwhile don’t make news. You know, like in The Little Prince: “The essential is invisible to the eye.” That’s the way it is. Mostly we only remember what causes a stir, stuff that turns us on or makes us sit up and think. “A forest growing makes less noise than a falling tree.’ Now miracles are, by definition, wonderful occurrences. So we have to develop a sense of wonder to appreciate miracles!

18

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Do miracles still happen?

- If that’s true, then I repeat, show us some examples ...

- Let’s go back a bit. Let me take as my first example Jeanne Frétel. I know her case well; we celebrated the fiftieth anniversary of her recovery together. “Once upon a time ...” — that’s the phrase, isn’t it? It was in 1948; Jeanne, then a girl of eighteen, was under sentence of death. She suffered from an illness we don’t see so much of in the West today: tuberculosis.

At the time, it was

incurable,

as we

didn’t have

effective antibiotics. The poor girl was in agony; she’d undergone three operations due to complications, grown really thin, lost her appetite and brought up virtually everything she tried to eat. She was confined to bed with a raging fever and had to have morphine injections three times a day for the pain. You get the picture. - So with the treatment available then, she didn’t have a chance?

- Absolutely. You need to look at it in context, like any historical study. Anyway, in this appalling state, virtually dying, she was taken on a pilgrimage to Lourdes. The first two days were very difficult. On the third — 8 October year — she was carried in on a stretcher to Mass for the Sick. priest hesitated to give her the Blessed Sacrament as she unconscious. Finally, he slipped a fragment of the Host into ‘mouth. And, at that very moment,

Jeanne recovered!

that The was her

Still on her

stretcher, she was taken to the grotto where Bernadette saw the Virgin Mary. There, she became wholly lucid again; she said she had no more pain, didn’t feel sick any more — in fact she was hungry! They took her to the hospital; there, to everyone’s amazement, she got out of her bed, walked about, asked for food ...

and began to eat.

ihe)

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Do miracles still happen?

Next day she was escorted to the Medical Bureau, where she was examined. She appeared well, with no lingering signs of her illness. Back at home, she suffered no further fevers and didn’t need her morphine injections. These were stopped suddenly without any withdrawal symptoms, which is unheard of. She ate so much she

put on fourteen kilos in a few weeks. A survival period of fifty years — not bad, eh? - Can you give us any other examples?

- Which to choose? They’re all fantastic! Look, I'll tell you about the first cure at Lourdes to be recognised as miraculous. It was kept pretty quiet at the time. The subject was a young woman of thirty-eight, Catherine Latapie, mother of four children — two had died in infancy, as often happened then — and expecting a fifth. Two years earlier, the unfortunate woman had tried to climb an oak tree to knock down acorns for her pigs; she’d fallen out, dislocating her right shoulder. She didn’t get it treated, and the outcome was -— this is a classic scenario — she developed an irritation of the ulnar nerve which is located near the shoulder-joint. This in turn resulted in permanent paralysis of the arm, hand and fingers, particularly disabling for a young woman in the country at a time when there were no machines like we have now. Now, during the night of 28 February/1 March 1858, Catherine woke up with a powerful urge to go straight to the grotto at Massabielle,

some

six

or

seven

kilometres

from

her

village.

Without hesitating, she woke up her two children, and off she went with them to Lourdes in the middle of the night — on foot, of course.

It was still dark when Catherine arrived at the grotto in the early hours of 1 March. She was driven to approach the spring discovered by Bernadette three days before; it was still only a thin trickle of

20

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Do miracles still happen?

muddy water. She dipped her paralysed hand into it and, lo and behold, to her astonishment, she had regained the complete use of her arm! At the same time, she started her first labour pains, recognising them, of course, from experience. She hurried home as quickly as she could, just in time to bring into the world a little boy, Jean-Baptiste. Obviously, she had more important things to do immediately afterwards than telling her story, but there’s no doubt about the date: it’s recorded in the register of births and deaths. - Have you got any more stories like that one?

- Did you know, in the archives of the Medical Bureau — onehundred-and-twenty years’ worth — there are between six and seven thousand cures recorded? At least, those the patients wanted to declare. Which means there must have been plenty more. - Are they all miracles?

- No, by no means. Only sixty-six cures have been recognised as miraculous up to now, or less than 1%. I'll explain why later. First, let’s look at a miracle from the inside, rather than remaining

spectators.

21

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Do miracles still happen?

“A phenomenon contrary to the expectations of medical science”

Dr P. Theillier The date is March 1976, in a small village in eastern Sicily, at the foot of Mount Etna. Young Delizia Cirolli, aged eleven-and-a-half, begins to complain of pain in her right knee, which is swollen. At first, no one pays attention; at last, after the inflammation worsens, she undergoes a series of X-rays and is admitted to hospital in Catania from 30 April to 17 May. There, the dreaded diagnosis of a malignant tumour is made from a biopsy of the upper extremity of the right tibia. Given the seriousness of the lesion and the otherwise hopeless prognosis, the doctors recommend amputation of Delizia’s leg. Her parents refuse, preferring to take their daughter back home to her familiar surroundings where she can be with her family and friends. The local people, who know the girl well, feel they cannot stand by without doing something. Firm believers, they decide to club together and raise the money for Delizia’s mother to take her daughter to Lourdes. The two set out on a pilgrimage from 5 to 13 August. Once there, Delizia seems to pick up, experiencing the urge to make frequent visits to the grotto, attend all the services and bathe in the pools. At first sight, nothing of note appears to be happening, except that she arrives back in Sicily exhausted ... Once home, the pain in her knee worsens, making it harder and harder, and finally impossible, for her to walk. At the end of November, her overall condition deteriorates to the point where her

mother contemplates preparing her funeral dress. No treatment is undertaken, but the local people remain optimistic, continuing to pray for her recovery, and her mother regularly gives her water brought back from the spring in the grotto.

pips

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Do miracles still happen?

It is now near Christmas, and the last days seem to be approaching for the little girl. Then, waking up one morning, totally unexpectedly, she tells her mother she wants to get out of bed ... and go outside. This she proceeds to do, to the stupefaction of her family, even managing to walk without pain along the road in front of the house. Overnight, the swelling in her knee reduces and, with

time, gradually disappears, whilst Delizia regains her appetite and puts on weight, going from twenty-two to thirty-four kilos in a short time. Very soon she is able to resume her normal life and returns to school at the start of the January term. New X-rays taken on 10 May 1977 show a degree of regeneration of the bony structure, which continues until the knee is completely healed. In July 1977, the girl returned with her mother to Lourdes to give thanks. The mother also wished to inform the Medical Bureau of Delizia’s cure. From the clinical point of view, the results were normal. All that was noted was a residual valgus of the affected tibia; X-rays taken before and after recovery revealed a totally unexpected healing of the lesion.

Examined again on 28 July 1980, she was still in perfect health, displaying growth and development consistent with her age. Numerous investigations were carried out; as both diagnosis and prognosis were definitive and no treatment could be particularised ‘as responsible for her return to normal health, it was decided that

“in view of the conditions in which this cure took place and was maintained, it should be regarded as a phenomenon contrary to the observations and expectations of medical experience, and scientifically unexplainable”’.

23

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Do miracles still happen?

In its session of 26 September 1982, the International Medical Committee of Lourdes, the expert body forming the second tier in the

verification

process

at Lourdes,

gave

as

its considered

opinion that Delizia’s recovery was beyond doubt and unexplained. It passed on the dossier to the archbishop of her diocese, who alone had the power to make an official, canonical declaration.

A methodical and meticulous investigation by his canonical commission finally ended on 28 June 1989 with a solemn proclamation of the miraculous nature of this cure, and of its validity as a sign from God. Meanwhile, as she had wanted, young Delizia underwent an operation in 1988 for her residual valgus. She had married two years earlier, having qualified as a nurse in 1985. Since then, she has been faithfully escorting patients on the train to Lourdes, a living, if discreet, witness of the divine grace which restored her. Delizia Cirolli is the sixty-fifth person to have experienced miraculous cure at Lourdes.

24

a

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — What is behind a miracle?

Chapter 3 What is behind a miracle? “God has such a thirst for our love that he grabs our attention by performing miracles.”

Jean Eudes

- Getting “inside” a miracle means trying to discover its cause, what is at the origin of something very astonishing and mysterious. I'll only talk here about miraculous cures, which are our special study at Lourdes. A physical cure is a fact, a phenomenon. A phenomenon is something visible, tangible, like an instantaneous recovery. A phenomenon, whatever it is, is defined as the interaction between a fact, the perceptible occurrence (the healing), and the significance we attach to it. So we are talking about the relationship between fact and meaning. We cannot separate the two concepts. Are you with me? - Yes, go on!

- In the case of a cure that is unexpected, astounding, marvellous, we are faced with precisely this problem. We need to take account of the fact itself — the cure — just as much as the interpretation put on it by the patient. This is very important; people who undergo an unexpected cure may keep it to themselves. End of story. On the other hand, they may feel they ought to mention it; only they can decide. At Lourdes, the Medical Bureau deals only with cases spontaneously reported by patients or their carers. We start with the account given by the person who feels he or she has been the object of divine grace. The patient alone — or his or her carers if the person was unconscious, in a coma

or too young — can make this declaration.

pm

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — What is behind a miracle?

- After that, what happens?

- We begin a twofold investigation. On the medical side, we have to be sure a cure really has taken place and that it cannot be explained scientifically — we’llreturn to that later, that’s not our main concern here. The other aspect involves asking what is behind this phenomenon. The patient is the most likely person to see its significance. The astonishing thing is that a patient who has undergone a miraculous cure knows and feels it at a precise moment in time — quite unlike someone who enjoys what doctors call a “spontaneous remission”, and does not feel anything happen. With cures at Lourdes, the patients invariably know they’ve been cured at a particular instant; they are acutely aware of it happening and can describe it. From then on, they start wondering what is behind their

recovery. - And obviously, since they are Christians and have come to Lourdes, they believe it was sent by God, that God has specially intervened on their behalf!

- Why not? And since you’re so clever, Damien, why don’t you explain to me what it’s all about? - How do you know that miracles aren’t caused by some sort of magical power? - Good question. Let’s follow that up. You say “magical”. You’re obviously not referring to magicians in the sense of performers — illusionists, conjurors and so on. You mean supernatural powers. - Of course.

26

TALKING ABOUT

MIRACLES — What is behind a miracle?

- People have always believed in cures using magical or occult powers. They did so right back in the time of the Pharaohs; remember the magicians in The Prince of Egypt? Today people still go in for this — more than ever in fact. We can even say we are witnessing a revival of belief in the power of magic, superstition and the supernatural. Don’t you think the reason is because everything which can’t be seen or explained has been banished by our over-rationalist, over-materialist society? So we’ve been swamped by every shape and form of weird beliefs: spiritualism, fortune-telling, astrology, Orientalism, magic and so on. Believe me, these can be very dangerous! - Uncool, then?

- Definitely ... First, all this esoteric nonsense is too tempting to be true, and there’s an enormous risk of getting trapped in it; you dip your little finger in it and, wow, you find you’re bound hand and foot. Another thing. The forces involved in these cults are vague, shadowy ones; they cut off people who dabble in them from the real world; they can unbalance their minds, even kill them. You must

always judge a tree by its fruit! Just look where these occult sects have led people ... - And what about the natural gift of healing? - It does exist. But you’ve got to distinguish between people who use these gifts out of sheer compassion, not for money, and those who take advantage of them. Some of them get all pretentious and set themselves up as gurus; unfortunately, they can have a lot of influence.

- What do you make of the power of the mind?

Zi

TALKING ABOUT

MIRACLES — What is behind a miracle?

- I’m not forgetting it. You need to look at it objectively. What we’re talking about here is the ability of the mind to influence the body. It’s possible, of course, but it usually happens in a negative way, in the sense that it provokes illnesses more often than it cures them. All the same, it’s an argument that needs taking seriously. It’s not new, either. One of the fiercest opponents of miracles was the famous Professor Charcot of the Salpétri¢ére Hospital in Paris — he was already promoting mind power at the end of the nineteenth century. Nowadays, “mind healing” is the buzzword with people into New Age beliefs. Both these concepts are basically the same, even though a hundred years or so apart. But they need to be studied in the context of the cure. - Which means ?

- It means that once again, we must always make the connection between the fact of a cure and the interpretation placed on it. I don’t mind admitting, it’s not that easy to quantify the power of thought, suggestion, hypnosis, mind healing and all the other trendy methods connected with darker forces. So it’s absolutely vital we make a distinction between the medical and spiritual aspects.

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“I had opened the door on an abyss” Jean-Luc

“T got into astrology when I was fourteen or fifteen. I was right in the middle of an adolescent crisis. One day, I found a book on astrology at a mate’s house; I didn’t read it so much as devour it! As I flicked through the pages, I thought I’d discovered the answer to all my questions. What the book said seemed to fit my situation perfectly. In fact, this first discovery only whetted my appetite to find out more. Reading how different characters matched different signs of the zodiac, I recognised myself and people I knew. Gradually it became a sort of reflex to consult the book. When you really get into these sorts of things, you imagine you’re developing some kind of psychic power. I was like, ‘Wicked, you can really amaze people!’ You think you’ve got a gift. After a few months, I actually began to guess the star signs of people I met. I got better and better as I went on. At the same time, though, the people themselves began to interest me less and less; when I'd guessed their birth signs, I thought I knew all about them. That made me more and more depressed.

Then I discovered Chinese astrology. I tried to work out my future using a sort of divination game. I experimented every day for a month, always getting the same answer: I was going to find my ‘sister soul’. In fact, I did meet up with a girl some time afterwards! We hit it off brilliantly. Things happened very fast, and a few weeks later we were living together. But I still wasn’t happy. The deeper I got into this relationship, the less I felt at peace inside. I felt

JS)

TALKING ABOUT

MIRACLES — What is behind a miracle?

I didn’t really love her, that] was acting out a role so as not to lose her and go back to being alone. It was then that I threw myself heart and soul into astrology. It was the only way that seemed open to me. I bought all sorts of books and software. I spent my student’s allowance like water ... I worked out our astral themes, studied them carefully and compared the results. Everything matched up; we were absolutely made for each other! I really believed it. Astrology was a science, wasn’t it? After six or eight months’ researching the themes intensively, I decided in future to follow them to the letter — even if our relationship was becoming more and more stormy, it was part of our destiny. At this time, I began to suffer bouts of depression and insecurity, even panic attacks. When I projected our relationship into the future, I freaked out.

Gradually I started to pray again. For me, there was actually no contradiction between faith and astrology. I reasoned like this: God made the stars; the stars are rays; electromagnetic rays influence our personalities. Since I was born on a particular day, God wanted me to undergo particular influences. For a few weeks, I spent the whole afternoon every day praying in a church, asking God to confirm my choice. The more I prayed, the less peaceful I became. I was kind of torn apart inside.

As a result of all this inner turmoil, I began to hate this girl, to look on her as almost some kind of demon. I imagined she was dragging me down to destruction. She practised astrology too, which made her able to read all my thoughts. That was unbearable: it was as if I was being pursued, trapped. Still, our relationship lasted five years. It was a living hell.

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TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — What is behind a miracle?

I felt as if P’'d been torn apart. This led me to sink deeper into despair. By taking up astrology, I had, without realising it, opened the door on an abyss. And nothingness is the most terrifying thing there is. The more you ‘fill yourself with nothingness’, the more desperately you search for a way out because you suffer so much. Astrology leads to all sorts of other ‘beliefs’: New Age, reincarnation ... Nothing surprises you any more, you evolve a sort of unified theory of everything that feels real smart. Then it starts getting scary: you begin believing there are uncontrollable forces out there in the Universe, and you end up just waiting for the inevitable catastrophe. When I finished my studies, I got work straight away. But I was in such a state inside I couldn’t hold a job down, and I found myself unemployed after six months. Without anything to live on, there was no chance of setting up home. So we split up. Some time afterwards, my partner met another guy. Everything I’'d wanted to build collapsed before my eyes like a pack of cards. I’d decided to consult a witch doctor and put a curse on my former partner: I wanted to activate all the powers you feel are in a latent state in astrology. I also had strong urges to commit suicide.

I went back to my parents. Then I telephoned my brother. He was a committed Christian, but I always considered him a religious fanatic. That day, however, I felt the need to call him. He invited me over to

his place. For four hours I poured out the story of my life and all my troubles. When I’d finished, he said only: ‘Suppose you come back to Jesus?’ At that moment, I had an inner awareness of all the Lord’s

love for me, and, simultaneously, of all the wrong I’d done. It was both very comforting and very powerful; I wept for hours, and felt an

31

TALKING ABOUT

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overwhelming urge to go to Confession. My sins were unbearable to me. Immediately afterwards, I burned my astrology books. Looking back, I was scared stupid; I realised what I’d got into.

The Virgin Mary helped me a lot. During a retreat, she made me understand how far I’d been taken in by the ‘Great Illusionist’. I realised how dumb and arrogant all this astrology stuff was. The arrogance of pretending we can run our lives without the Lord’s help! What I had to do was direct my will and my mind along totally different lines. That took some time. I was also cured of my panic attacks; when we give ourselves to Jesus, Satan has no more power over us. Each time I felt an attack coming on, I would tell myself: ‘This is not my battle.’ From then on, I found peace again.

I learned later that, during the whole of this time, my family had prayed a great deal for me. My brother had a demanding professional career, but he’d say a decade or the whole rosary for me every day. And when I was at rock bottom, my grandmother remarked to one of my girl cousins: ‘We’ll save Jean-Luc with our prayers.’ And that is just what happened!”

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TALKING ABOUT

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Chapter 4 Can we reconcile faith and science? “(True) miracles are not at variance with the ‘laws’ of nature, which merely express the (statistically) determinable outcome of phenomena in their natural state. On the contrary, they are intermittent expressions of the Universe’s most fundamental purpose, which is to reveal God, to allow us a glimpse of ‘the light of his countenance’. This in itself suggests a cosmic order where something might develop into someone.” Maurice Zundel

- When we’re faced with an astonishing cure, we try, as we said, to work out its origin by examining jointly the two aspects of the one, identical reality: the abnormal occurrence and its significance. The abnormal

occurrence

is the cure

itself, abnormal

because

it is

completely unexpected in the context of medical experience; the significance is that perceived by the patient, leading him or her to believe in the intervention of a higher spiritual power. At Lourdes, as resident physician, my first task is to take into consideration this single, indivisible reality, simultaneously a medical and a spiritual phenomenon.

- I don’t see how you can reconcile the two ... - I can, though, and that’s what’s exciting; provided you don’t mix them up. The scientific approach calls for precise rules. The spiritual dimension is another matter; you have to respect it, and not let the scientific investigation trespass on its territory or crowd it out. As is often the case, the only way to see the connection

33

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Can we reconcile faith and science?

between things is to look at them individually — but certainly not place them in opposition. As a doctor and a scientist,

I agree with the Church’s

position:

Nothing can help the cause of religion more than the scientific pursuit of the truth. The better we understand Creation and its laws, the better we’ll know the Creator and his mysteries. I find it very disturbing that, in the minds of many people, faith and science are irreconcilable. No: religion doesn’t retreat as science advances. Rather, the more things are explained scientifically, the more they invite religious reflection. “A little science estranges men from God, but much science leads them back to him.” That was what the great Louis Pasteur remarked.

You know,

mind

and matter have

much more in common than we think!

I ought to mention as well that ’m not one of those who blindly believe that everything “scientific” is infallibly true and that, by implication, all medical discoveries must be good. Let’s not be naive; science — especially medicine — depends a great deal on how it’s applied, not to mention the fact that everything is governed by harsh economic realities. - In practical terms, though, how do you go about things? - There are two different sorts of knowledge, each with its own laws: scientific knowledge and the knowledge of faith. I have to look at them both side by side. Take the Creation, for instance. What is the first sentence of the Bible? - “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” - Well done, Aurélie! And what does science say?

34

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Can we reconcile faith and science?

- Everything began with expansion of the universe.

- You

sound

the Big Bang,

like a scientist

already!

Do

which

initiated

the two

the

statements

contradict each other, though? I don’t think they do. The Bible isn’t

a scientific journal. It’s an inspired piece of writing which doesn’t seek to offer rational explanations; it gives us the general sense of things, a basic outline. Science, on the other hand, deals with how

things happen and is based on what is verifiable. For example, it looks for an explanation of the very first moment in the existence of the universe, and how that universe developed. To do this, it uses observations on both a macrocosmic and a microcosmic scale; it follows a logical process by subjecting theories to series of experiments and analyses, the aim being to produce results which can be replicated under strictly controlled conditions.

But that does not prevent faith from investigating why these things happen, relying chiefly on the Word of God itself, the Revelation. This is an important distinction, universally recognised today, and distinction is not separation. - But they are two different things, though.

- Yes, but they’re not in opposition. Far from it: science deals in causality (a phenomenon explained by a law), faith in finality (every phenomenon has purpose, meaning). Agreed, faith and science haven’t got on well together in the past. I very much hope that you, in the twenty-first century, will live to see faith and science reconciled. Failure to distinguish the two can lead us to confuse their roles, making bad science and bad religion. Separating them leaves too many blanks which science is tempted to fill in, when it’s really the province of religious faith. In principle, there’s no conflict between how and why. OK?

35

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Can we reconcile faith and science?

- So, basically, faith and science approaching the truth?

are

two

different

ways

of

- Exactly, Benjamin. Truth is more than reality. Pope John Paul II put it beautifully in his encyclical Fides et ratio: “Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth.” Science is so powerful nowadays; it seems almost logical that faith should base itself on science! But that’s not practical. There would be muddle and confusion; it wouldn’t help faith or science. Which doesn’t mean, we should add, that religious studies reject all logical reasoning of the scientific type. By no means. Reason has a role to play in belief, and faith relies on very precise disciplines. Furthermore, it’s not uncommon to find scientists, who can be quite

irrational where religion is concerned, making judgements on faith when they know nothing about it; or others who think that faith means adhering to superficial dogma which doesn’t involve our intelligence and has even less relevance to our existence. - Yet science is the ultimate truth!

- No way! You can see for yourself that the disciplines are in a constant state of evolution. advanced science sees its “conclusions” as the and definitive truth; scientists tend to think relative, provisional, subject to correction.

different scientific Not even the most absolute, universal of their results as

- And it’s the same in medicine?

- Especially in medicine! For a start, it’s not an exact science; again, it always operates on a particular, individual level, where the personality of the patient plays an important part.

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TALKING ABOUT

MIRACLES — Can we reconcile faith and science?

“We think we ought to share this miracle” Dr P. Theillier Not long after I was appointed to my post at the Medical Bureau, a journalist from Canada asked me if there was any record of miraculous cures happening to Canadians. I searched back through the archives until I stumbled on a statement dating to 1993. In this, a Canadian reported the healing of his granddaughter Roxanne, who remained in Canada throughout the time in question. This is a summary of his declaration. Roxanne was born in Vancouver, on the Pacific coast of Canada, on

20 May 1989.

At the age of four months, she was examined by a paediatrician who discovered she was suffering from total congenital deafness. She was therefore referred to a specialist hearing centre. Her grandparents, who lived some seven hundred kilometres north of Vancouver, decided in 1993 to make a pilgrimage to Lourdes to ask Our Lady to cure her. It was a difficult journey, involving seven different flights.

While they were praying for her recovery at the Sanctuaries, Roxanne’s mother, six thousand kilometres away, observed that her daughter had suddenly begun to jump when she heard a noise! That evening, she told her father this on the phone; he remarked that it

must have happened at the very moment he entered the pools at Lourdes. Next day, Roxanne was taken by her mother to the hearing centre, where specialists ‘confirmed her hearing was now perfectly

normal.

oul

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Can we reconcile faith and science?

To resolve any doubts, I wrote straight away to Roxanne’s mother asking for news: this was five years after her cure. Below is her reply of 19 August 1998: “Dear Dr Theillier,

Roxanne and I are very happy to authorise the publication of her story. Roxanne is now nine. She is a very happy little girl. She adores music and plays the recorder at school. She sings everywhere: in church, in the house, even when she’s playing alone in her room. She is a devout believer, as are her brothers Patrick, Jean-Louis and

Alexandre. My children aren’t in the slightest embarrassed to tell anyone (even non-believers) that Roxanne is a miracle baby. We feel we ought to share this miracle, both with those who believe and

those who don’t. Thank you for allowing us the chance to do so.”

This cure has never been subjected to any in-depth investigation; consequently, it is not classified as a “Lourdes miracle”. The same is true of all the other cures mentioned from here on in this book. This is so you won’t close your eyes to everything except miracles “rubber-stamped” by the authorities — those involving physical healing. As we shall see, the particular and most important function of the latter is to recall, reveal or confirm all the “ordinary miracles” that don’t make the official lists.

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TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — What God?

Chapter 5 What God? “All religions are paths men take in search of God. They are many. The Christian revelation is unique, for there it is God who finds Man.” Paul Evdokimov

- Well, we’ve taken a brief look at what’s behind a miracle. Now here’s a classic definition which can’t be accused of bias. It comes from the dictionary: “An extraordinary occurrence perceived to represent a divine and benevolent intervention, and which is credited with a spiritual significance.” So clearly a miracle can only be conceived of in religious terms. We need to go into this a bit deeper together. As you know, there are lots of religions; humankind, so to speak, is a “religious animal”, meaning we realise we are mortal and will have to die one day. Consequently, we need to find a meaning for our stay on Earth; we ponder what lies beyond death, beyond our limited vision as human beings. In fact, it’s always been natural for us to want to surpass our natural limitations. Firstly, in time; hence

cults of the dead, tombs perpetuating the memory of our existence, our search for our origins. And, more recently, in space; what is out there among the galaxies in our endless universe, which we know is continuously expanding? In addition, people have always looked for a meaning to their lives. Why is life here so short? Is there nothing afterwards? And, on a higher plane, does not there exist one God, or many gods, somewhere beyond space and time? Don’t you ever find yourself wondering this? ET san YES!

39

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — What God?

- That’s quite normal; we can’t see the invisible, but, naturally, we

look beyond the limitations of our senses. You don’t need to for that! I’d even say it’s the youngest of us — small children intuitively feel there’s another world which we don’t know because they’ve not yet reached the stage where they everything to be logically explainable.

be old — who about, expect

People have always practised religion, then. You know how the Romans had their gods (Neptune, Venus, and so on), the Gauls too (“By Toutatis!””) and the Greeks (Orpheus, Aphrodite ...). You’ve

heard about all these. You also know there are many religions, like Hinduism,

Buddhism,

Islam

... V’1l remind

you: there are three

major religions which believe in one single God — monotheistic religions we call them, from the Greek monos (one) and theos (god) — they are Judaism, Christianity and Islam, all of which trace their ancestry back to Abraham, the “Father of the Faithful”.

Next, I think it’s important to understand and keep in mind the different ways of approaching miracles. This will gradually help us to pinpoint what they are; the reality of a miracle depends first and foremost on our conception of how God operates in the universe. First, there are those who deny God exists. Plenty of people feel that, especially in today’s affluent society. But we must distinguish between atheists, who deny the existence of any form of divine power, and agnostics — the larger group nowadays — who either ignore the question of God or think there’s no answer. For them it’s obvious miracles can’t exist — that follows logically. Yet it does prove that, in most people’s minds, miracles are connected with God, as we’ve already stressed. Do you follow me so far? - Yes, yes, I do.

40

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — What God?

- Secondly, it’s possible to believe in God, but a outside our universe. Why on earth should he come human existence, totally independent of his, by called miracles? In today’s secular society, this majority view among believers.

God absolutely and interfere in performing sois certainly the

- What do you mean by “secular”? - I’m talking about those believers who are so immersed in things of this world, of the present moment — “secular” comes from the Latin saeculum, age or century — that their faith is really just a family tradition; in actual fact, they hardly believe in the divine any more, they’re not interested in truths which can’t be seen to be such. So we’ve lost our sense of the sacred, unlike Eastern or African

peoples, for instance. We have to admit that all of us are subject to some extent to this influence because we’re so conditioned to it; our faith and trust are in our own abilities, our insurance policies, our bank accounts, everything belonging to the here and now, the immediate world, tangible things. Finally, many of us do admit there’s a God who’s a sort of “great clockmaker’, who set up the celestial mechanisms of heaven and earth. Now, however, he couldn’t care less what happens to us, except that, one day, he’ll judge us sitting up there on his heavenly throne ... Do you like that vision of God? - No way! That’s really dumb ...

- You said it, Julien! Unfortunately, though, that’s the commonest idea of God nowadays, and it’s a pity. We need to admit there’s something sorely lacking in this view of God. It derives from a belief that God exists only to punish us and give us a hard time. This is a misinterpretation (a doctrine known as Jansenism) which has scarred whole generations and done a lot of harm. It’s one of

4]

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — What God?

the main reasons why people turn against Christianity; that’s understandable in itself, though there are actually more logical and positive ways they could react. Nonetheless, I'll say it quite openly: that kind of religion is false theology, and we’re right to reject it. - And what about other religions?

- Most other religions have, fortunately, retained a sense of the sacred. Take Islam, where everything, including humanity, is under the immediate and direct control of Allah (the Islamic God), who

does with everyone whatever he pleases, for good or Westerners think we’re all-powerful; Muslims have a lot to about a “transcendent” deity: the Creator, the Absolute, Other, the Different One, the Eternal. And yet, if God can he likes with anyone anywhere in the universe, he must utterly and absolutely distant from humankind.

ill. We teach us the Alldo what remain

- But isn’t that the same with Christianity?

- No. For Christians, God is not utterly outside our universe as people often claim. God is not some old man with a white beard sitting up in heaven watching us like we watch ants scurrying about on the ground. He is not only an all-powerful God, whose power is independent of the laws of nature. Our God is a God of love who loves us of his own free will. We are loved by God; that’s what changes the whole picture. And this God will do anything to show his love for us, especially by giving us signs ...

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TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — What God?

“Mind my business, and Ill mind yours” Dr P. Theillier Miraculous cures are a great deal more numerous than we imagine! The fact is that, to canonise someone, the Church requires a sign from God, a miracle confirming his intentions. And Pope John Paul II has proclaimed more saints during his Pontificate than in any other period in the Church’s history. One such was Edith Stein. From a Jewish family, the last of eleven children, Edith Stein was born in Germany on 12 October 1891, the day of Yom Kippur, which is one of fasting and expiation for the sins of Israel. After a period of doubt, at the age of thirty she asked to be baptised, and became a nun at the Carmelite Convent in Cologne under the name of Sister Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. Arrested by the Nazis, she was sent to Auschwitz concentration camp, where she died in the gas chambers on 9 August 1942. The miraculous cure required for her canonisation took place on 20 March 1987. On that day, Father Emmanuel Charles McCarthy,

a Catholic priest of the Byzantine rite, was returning with his wife Mary to their home in Brockton, Massachusetts. They had just been attending a retreat, the first time they had been separated from their twelfth

child,

Benedicta,

since

her birth

two-and-a-half

years

previously. They had left the smallest children in the care of the older ones (the eldest was nineteen). But the parents arrived home

‘to be told that Benedicta had been rushed convulsions. The cause was so far unknown ...

to hospital

with

You can imagine the parents’ distress. They dashed to the hospital, where doctors had just worked out that the toddler had got hold of a pack of painkillers and swallowed an estimated sixteen times the fatal dose. She was transferred immediately to the hospital in

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — What God?

Boston, fifty kilometres away, where a paediatric gastroenterologist, Dr Ronald Kleinman, fought to keep her alive. His prognosis was pessimistic: her kidneys were no longer functioning, and her liver was enlarged to five times the normal size. She needed a liver transplant, but there was no donor available. It was Sunday. Father McCarthy was due to catch a plane to preach in North Dakota. But what if he got back too late? A year earlier, Mary had seen her thirteenth child die at birth. Could he leave her alone at Benedicta’s bedside? Returning to the hospital and begging God to make known his will, he happened on a passage in St Teresa of Avila’s Way of Perfection where Jesus says to the nun: “Mind my business, and I'll mind yours.” The weight lifted from his mind. At 11.30 am, his plane took off from Boston. He called regularly for news of his daughter, to be told that the prognosis remained very grave, even if she managed to get the transplant everyone was waiting for. The same day, his wife phoned her sister Theresa, in Wisconsin, to tell her the awful news. “We must beg Edith Stein (Teresa Benedicta) to save her!” Benedicta’s aunt exclaimed without hesitation. The child had been born on 9 August 1984, on the anniversary of her namesake’s death. Father McCarthy had only discovered the moving story of Edith a year before. Fascinated, he’d repeated it to everyone he’d met.

Benedicta’s aunt revealed afterwards: “The idea of praying to Edith Stein came to me spontaneously, as something obvious we should do.” Grasping at her sister’s advice like an inspiration from the Holy Spirit, Mary made dozens of telephone calls across the USA, contacting relations, friends and people who’d been on her husband’s retreats. “Ask Edith Stein to pray to Jesus for our

44

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — What God?

daughter’s recovery,” she begged them. And so a prayer chain was formed. It was now Tuesday afternoon. Father McCarthy had conducted his retreat, and was back in the plane. At the same instant, in Boston, doctors noticed a sudden and inexplicable improvement in the dying Benedicta’s condition. She was out of her coma. There was not the slightest sign of any residual problem. She was kept in for observation for a few days, but her liver and kidney functions had returned to normal, and it was eventually decided to let her go home. Today, she is still perfectly well. “There will be no interviews about this miraculous happening,’ was Father McCarthy’s initial reaction. But his wife managed to convince him that Edith Stein’s intercession merited publication. Dr Ronald Kleinman, who had been in charge of little Benedicta’s case at Boston Hospital, agreed, though Jewish, to take part in the canonical inquiry, her case having “astonished” him. He went so far as to travel to Rome in June 1996 to give his interpretation of the facts to the doctors of the Consulta Medica (the Vatican Medical

Bureau) reporting to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. As a result of this miracle, in 1998 Edith Stein was canonised by John Paul II in Rome.

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TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Miracles: signs from God

Chapter 6 Miracles: signs from God “Miracles are only truly miraculous in the eyes of those who have learnt to recognise divine influence in the most mundane of occurrences.”

Maurice Blondel - You mentioned “signs”. What signs?

- All sorts. God gives us many different signs. It’s up to us to see them. Can anyone give me some examples?

- Irene, when you kiss me, it’s a sign that ...

- ... | love you.

- Exactly. It’s a sign of affection. But if you pull a face ... - It’s a sign I’m not happy.

- You've got it. And when you see me frown at you, what do you do? - | start paying attention.

- Good thinking! - I could also say, to hell with it!

- Another Brownie point each! A sign is an appeal to our freedom of choice; we can either accept it, or refuse it, not bother with it. A sign,

46

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Miracles: signs from God

by its very nature, leaves us free to decide. As does God. No one has ever seen him. God himself is invisible. (All agreed?) He isn’t like us, he doesn’t thrust himself forward. He remains hidden, doing the most wonderful things. The first of these was the Creation. He alone is the true Creator. When we make something, we always have to start with other things. He creates from nothing, incognito. - Incognito?

- Er, anonymously. God didn’t make the universe once and for all and then disappear back to heaven. No! He is always creating. He is the Eternal Creator. He keeps the universe running. He holds the world in his hands, keeps us going all the while. Without him, we wouldn’t exist. This is the miracle of miracles, one we can’t see! The presence

of God within his Creation is a permanent miracle. In fact, isn’t it possible for the supernatural to be contained within the natural — something provided for by the Creator? I don’t think we should be too quick to see natural and supernatural as opposites; isn’t it the same God involved in miracles as in the wonders of Creation? - How do you mean?

- Well, the sun rises every morning at a predictable time; can’t you see that as a miracle, even if astronomy can explain it scientifically? It’s like so many miracles; we end up not noticing them any more because we’re too used to them. The marvel of our bodies, for ‘instance, when they’re in good health; they repair damaged cells all by themselves. What would you call this permanent miracle? - The miracle of life! - Got it in one, Clotilde! It’s a disastrous mistake not to consider life as sacred, inviolable, any more. We overlook the miracle of life

because it’s so natural. But with the world in the state it is, we should take a long, hard look at life and re-evaluate it for what it is.

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TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Miracles: signs from God

First of all, a whole array of incredible, miraculous circumstances had to come together for life to appear millions of years ago. And you can scientifically dissect any living thing down to the tiniest particle, but who will ever be able to say what exactly is life? Don’t you think every pregnancy is a miracle? The woman carrying a baby doesn’t have to do anything ... She doesn’t need to work at getting her baby to develop ... In the Bible, God’s first miracle was to establish the regular rhythms of the universe, right? Let’s not look for miracles where there aren’t any, but try and see them first in everyday things, in all the signs of God’s constant attention to us. And then, there’s another miracle in our lives, apart from life itself ... Can’t any of you name it? Providence — does that mean anything to you? - Not really ... - OK. Providence means “taking care of’. God cares at every moment for those who agree to live on friendly terms with him, like father and child, and who have faith in him. But God’s Providence

is in equal measure to our reliance on him. If he remains a distant God for me, if I count solely — or mainly — on my own abilities, he will not intervene in my life, because he always respects my freedom of choice. As I said before, someone who is baptised a Christian and simply sticks to what the Creed says certainly has faith, but a faith, belief, whatever, which is not a real part of his or

her life, where miracles aren’t acceptable, can’t happen. - Do you honestly think God looks after us all the while?

- Absolutely. All of us want a miracle, don’t we? Frangois, are you waiting for one, do you expect God to perform a miracle for you? Well, he has! All the time. All sorts of miracles happen without your knowing — God is watching over us, guarding us, whether we're awake or asleep. The problem is, we can’t see them! The first thing we need to do is rediscover our sense of wonder, admiration (the word “miracle” is connected with “admiration”, from the Latin

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TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Miracles: signs from God miror, “wonder’) like our elder brothers and sisters in faith, the

Jews. They have kept up the habit of thanking God at every instant, so it’s easy for them to feel they’re always in his presence. This recognition of God’s permanent involvement in our lives, expressed through praise, either individually or communally, and maintained whatever the circumstances, is proof of our faith and

confidence in him, and gives him freedom to act. Our gratitude and approbation allow him to do this without restraining our freedom in any way. He can intervene in a tangible way in all our lives. - So, in fact, you’re saying that, if we place our total confidence in God, he takes care of us at every instant, perfectly, better than any father could?

- Precisely. Those who put themselves entirely into the Father’s hands, who trust in God for everything, will receive wonderful gifts. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus called such people by the Hebrew word anawim: the meek, the “poor in spirit”, promising them great blessings and rewards, recognised as coming from the Almighty. This is the divine in everyday life. - So you’re not talking about miracles, then?

- No, but when you’re in this state of mind, God, through his Spirit, the Holy Ghost, can in fact, if he thinks it right, exceed the normal ‘ course of nature by a divine intervention, which is then in the order

of the miraculous. Finally, for whoever is willing to see it, miracles are normal

occurrences,

in the sense that a miracle is a sign of

God’s love, a sign that he is the friend of humankind, proof that God’s

relationship with humanity is a personal, loving one. I maintain that, if being a Christian consists merely in obeying a moral code and carrying out religious duties — like going to Mass — without it changing anything in our daily lives, without us receiving the gifts God wants to give us, then our faith is all in vain.

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“Let him send someone to rescue me”

Ségoléne “During a visit to the Holy Land, I went for a dip in Lake Tiberias. Despite all the warnings, I swam away from my friends, singing to myself, reassured by the calmness of the water. I swam quickly, way, way out ... After some time, the water became choppy. I turned round and realised I was all alone and couldn’t see the shore. I felt myself being carried off further and further by the current ... It was then I realised how foolish I’d been; I was in trouble, and exhausted. There was nothing I could do to help myself, and my last and only hope was ... prayer. So I began praying as I waited, looking at my watch regularly so as not to lose all notion of time and panic, as panic can kill. I called on the Lord, admitting my stupidity. I made a pact with him: if such was his will, I would die there and then, aged twenty-three, but if I really had a ‘role’ to play on earth, let him send someone to rescue me. After some

ten minutes

(and, I assure

you, in this situation ten

minutes seems like for ever!), I spotted two people in the distance. I called out to them, but it was no good. Then I began to pray to die. I felt myself drifting off. Some five minutes later, the two people came back; I don’t know how, they saw my hand waving feebly. They turned out to be two locals; they admitted afterwards they rarely ventured so far out at that time of day, knowing the calm appearance of the lake was dangerously deceptive. It was only later that my brush with death really hit me, and I trembled with terror and shock; in the water, I was almost calm, even ‘prepared’ to die. This calmness must have come from God when I prayed to him. The upshot was that I took stock of the power and importance of prayer in my life.

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TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Miracles: signs from God

We have to trust in the Lord and put our lives in his hands, for he is near us at every moment. He is our guide, and unquestioning trust in him the source of inner peace. I know now too that my life has a meaning; we all have a part to play; we need to live to the full, not play at living. This life is a gift to us, we’re not just here by chance like I used to think, we’re not here for ourselves, but to give ourselves to others, to pledge ourselves to life, never let go. Today, I really want to live and feel like I did the day after this adventure, reprieved, so to speak; to accomplish something as best I can each day, with love; to get to know people in the true sense. This approach has also helped me not to see the future as something frightening — all of a piece, set in stone — as lots of young people do; I now live from day to day, as best I can.

I think God purposely puts people in our way, people we can help, or, the other way round, who can enrich our own lives; but, in any case, each meeting comes from him, and will only be fruitful if we let him inspire and guide us. Today, everything I do is according to his will; God alone guides my life, I give him everything I am, and place myself at his service that the light of his countenance may shine through me upon others. So don’t wait till you start drowning before you wake up! Live to the full with Jesus!”

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TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — God is close to us and loves us

Chapter 7 God is close to us and loves us “Miracles are chinks of light, opened windows, signs announcing the fullness of being that God desires for us, a foretaste of his Resurrection.” Jacques Perrier - As I said before, Christian faith doesn’t merely mean believing in the existence of a God, nor believing in a God completely outside our lives. God made himself close to us; he became Man for us, a baby, born in a manger. God allowed himself to be “born of woman”. Just think about that! Everything changes, starting from that Miracle with a capital M, the birth of the Saviour, his incarnation, the two-thousandth anniversary of which we celebrated a few years back. Christ’s entry on the stage of human history marks a complete break with religions which differentiate between the sacred and the profane. In Christianity, everything is spiritual. All aspects of our earthly existence derive ultimately from the divine.

Because God made himself Man, for us, faith in him is closely linked to faith in humankind. Other major religions may have an acute awareness of God, but they lack the sense of humanity infused by Jesus, who left his mark on our entire civilisation. Every person is sacred, because God is present in everyone, through his Son. (“Anything you did for one of my brothers or sisters here, however humble, you did for me.”) Furthermore, in all religions, miracles or unexpected cures can be signs of the transcendent power of the Unknowable. That’s no problem. But, in the Christian

faith, God shows his compassion for each one of us. - By miracles?

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- Possibly ... As I said earlier, anyone who listens to his or her heart

is open to miracles. The all-powerfulness of our God is the allpowerfulness of love. Jesus Christ revealed to us that the Christian God is also our Father. A Father who truly loves us and plays a tangible part in the way our lives turn out. - OK, but, if that’s true, tell me why God doesn’t start by putting an end to all the dreadful things happening in the world ...

- That’s a vital question, and I can understand you asking it, Julien. - That’s fine, all that other stuff, but the world’s still a lousy place. There are wars, people living in poverty, kids who are sick, handicapped, deformed; they never get helped ... Jesus didn’t cure every sick person,

and not all the sick who come

to Lourdes are

Evil

immeasurable,

cured! -

I quite

agree.

is a scandal,

immense,

abominable; we feel very small when faced by it. But strangely enough, to tackle this problem of evil, which always seems to have the last word, we need to explore a little deeper what Christianity is all about. Oh no, I’m not going to pretend I’ve got the answer to such an enormous question. No. All I can do, without straying too far from miracles, is to give you a few ideas to think about, though I know they only go part of the way. All of us feel lost when confronted with evil. Try telling yourself that God is the first to feel ‘that way. He is Perfect Love; he can’t help but be horrified by the evil in the world, can he?

- Yes, but surely all he’s got to do is stop it. - But the problem, in a nutshell, is that God is not a dictator.

- But is he all-powerful, yes or no?

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- His all-powerfulness is one of love. And love always leaves people free. Love has no weapons against others’ free will. Of course, God would’ve liked a perfect world, without evil, without sin, but we want our own way all the time. God even goes as far as to allow us the privilege of wounding him, offending him — what we call sin. - Then exactly what does God do?

- He’s always hoping — because he is love, unconditional love — that our heart will change and our ways alter. And in order to change us from inside — and not from the outside, as if by waving a magic wand — he sent his own Son, born of a woman, to us on earth at a particular moment in time. Jesus came to us to foster the good that is in everyone. We had closed the door on the One who’d created us free through pure love — barricaded ourselves behind our sins and denials. God took our sins, all our sins, upon himself, freely accepting to die on the Cross for us. To save us. On the Cross, God is totally disarmed, powerless, betraying his helplessness ... A single, compassionate glance at the Cross can convert, or heal, or console. The Cross is another miracle, the miracle of the Father, a powerful sign of his love for us, a sign standing between heaven and earth, entirely reversing the order of things. - Yes, but, two thousand years on evil is still on top ...

- Maybe, but nothing has been the same since. Before, people merely wanted things to change; now they have a definite hope they will. The miracle of the Cross reveals to those who accept it that the original, universal order of things is not the one we see, that the “law of the jungle” is not the right one. The real law that governs the universe is the law of love. And miracles are signs revealing that humanity isn’t stuck for ever in the same old rut of death and evil. They show that the sick, the victims, the poor are chosen citizens of the Kingdom of God, which stands in the shadow of the Cross.

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“... a note from the senior consultant to the effect that what had happened was unexplainable”’ Dr Michel Salefran

“My wife Bénédicte and I, ever since we first met, have always placed great confidence in the Virgin Mary. This trust has grown over the years, the Lord having blessed us with remarkable signs which have only encouraged us to leave everything in her hands. We spent our had entrusted have a large vows, since appearances.

honeymoon at Fatima. Without telling each other, we any future children to the care of Mary. We hoped to family. Fatima seemed the ideal place to make these it was to small children that the Virgin made her It was as we left the basilica, after pausing to reflect

by the tombs of Jacinta and Francisco, that we told each other what

we'd done. So, more than two years later, when Christophe, our eldest son, departed to rejoin his heavenly Mother on the feast day of Our Lady of Fatima, 13 October, we saw the coincidence of the dates as a sign

which helped us accept what had happened and make the sacrifice. Much later, we had a seventh child, Frangois-Régis, who suffered from a rare illness known as Sturge-Weber Syndrome, which is characterised by the presence of facial and leptomeningeal angiomas. These also affected his retina, meaning he was afflicted with congenital glaucoma, and his inner ear, causing him bouts of

dizziness, etc.

.

One evening in June, as the older children were having their meal, my wife was called to the phone, and the conversation went on for a long time. No sooner had she put down the receiver than someone else called. It was a neighbour warning us there was ‘someone in 25

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — God is close to us and loves us

our kiddies’ swimming pool’ in the garden. This was a round, metal, above-ground pool, about one metre high, with a set of steps. Every evening, we used to put the special cover on. So I rushed out, to find my son about fifty centimetres below the surface. He was floating face upwards, motionless, his arms outspread, his mouth and eyes open. Yelling, I grabbed hold of him and dragged him out of the water; he was cold, his eyes dilated, he wasn’t breathing

and his heart had stopped. (That’s the first thing I looked for; I’d been trained as an accident and emergency specialist.) Clearly, it was too late to revive him. I called my wife and children. With them round me, I laid Francois-

Régis on a table, and just stood there staring at him, powerless, paralysed with grief. My neighbour, a fireman, then arrived; he’d realised the whole truth before he phoned, but couldn’t get into our garden directly from his. At that moment, our eldest daughter, Marie, ten, said: ‘The Blessed

Virgin has already taken Christophe from us. She can’t take Fafa too. We ought to ask her.’ Her remark opened our eyes and suddenly gave us renewed hope. My wife asked the children to pray, knowing that the prayers of a child have much weight with the Lord. Meanwhile, aided by my neighbour, I started resuscitation, including cardiac massage and mouth-to-mouth. How long had it been? Difficult to tell under the circumstances. But our neighbour reckoned it had taken him a while to get through to us, and his daughter had seen the accident even before that through the dividing hedge. Moreover, I hadn’t started first aid for a long while after getting Fafa out of the water ... and he was cold! I think it must have been ten minutes at the very least ... As soon as we managed to get air into his lungs, we saw movement in the little finger of his right hand. Then he vomited up some cherries he’d pinched from the fridge. That gave us heart, and we

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continued working on him. Later, we called the paramedics but, by the time they arrived, Fafa was breathing for himself. All the same, he was like a vegetable, and there was no eye movement. He wasn’t reacting to our voices and was obviously still unconscious. It was therefore decided to take him to the intensive care department at the children’s hospital. I went with him in the emergency ambulance. During the journey, no further treatment was carried out. On the other hand, my wife, who was following in the car, was to tell us afterwards that something incredible happened to her: she had the impression that the Blessed Virgin was sitting next to her. She (my wife) began talking to her aloud, reminding her she’d watched over her Son even when he was thirtythree years old; she couldn’t let this second tragedy happen to a mother who had already lost one son, and so on. She then went on

to recite the Memorare' as she’d never done before. From this instant, things suddenly started to come right and, when Fafa reached hospital, he was already much better and had recovered consciousness. The doctors were puzzled as to exactly what had happened, and decided to keep him in intensive care all night. The first tests showed nothing: no water in his lungs, blood gases normal, all biological functions normal. Next morning, our son was transferred to the department of medicine, where further tests were carried out (EEGs, X-rays, etc.). Again, everything was normal! This was ‘made even stranger by the fact that, with his illness, Frangois-Régis should have reacted more severely to anoxia (lack of oxygen in the blood). He was sent home next day with a note from the senior

consultant

to the effect that what

had

happened

was

unexplainable. How to thank the Blessed Virgin for such a miraculous escape, except by going to Lourdes? That’s what we did, with all our children, the following Sunday.

2)

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — God is close to us and loves us

Francois-Régis is now eighteen, in perfect health, and, what’s more, enjoys a sound constitution. He no longer even has dizzy spells. The only lingering problem is the result of his glaucoma.”

|

é

4

;

ee

The prayer, formerly attributed to St Bernard, beginning: “Remember, most loving Virgin Mary, never was it heard that anyone who turned to you for help was left unaided ...”

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Chapter 8 The miracles of the Bible “A miracle occurs when an event acquires the power of beneficence, when a random occurrence becomes a bestowal of grace.” Henri Duméry

- I’ve already said how, looking at things through the eyes of faith, there are two sorts of “permanent” or “ongoing” miracles; the Creation and Providence. There are also those performed by God in the time of the Israelites, the Chosen People. In the Old Testament, you'll find many occasions when God intervened in human affairs, gradually revealing who he is. Who can give me some examples? - The crossing of the Red Sea...

- That’s one. Maybe this didn’t happen like you may have seen it in the movies, with the sea dividing into two. There could well have been an exceptionally low tide which allowed the Israelites to cross, but not the Pharaoh’s chariots. But what else could you call such an unlikely coincidence except a miracle? It’s the same with the Star of Bethlehem which guided the Three Kings. Both show us how God is the force behind human history. The only “coincidence” is that he always does these miracles incognito! - Cool!

- And, you know, the Bible is very realistic, admitting it’s never very easy to leave things to God. Think back to Genesis, the first book of the Bible ... What we could call the first miracle was met with a memorable outburst of laughter — the only laughter in the Bible! This was Sarah, in the terebinth grove of Mamre; she was so old she was quite shocked when she heard God telling her husband

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Abraham,

Father of the Faithful, that she’d bear him a son in a

year’s time ... This passage is so delightful, and rings so true, that it’s worth re-reading (Genesis 18:10-15):

Now Sarah was listening at the opening of the tent, and he was close beside it. Both Abraham and Sarah had grown very old, and Sarah was past the age of child-bearing. So Sarah laughed to herself and said, “I am past bearing children now that I am out of my time, and my husband is old.” The Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh ...?” [Understandably, God was not amused that Sarah laughed at such an announcement.] “Is anything impossible for the Lord? In due season I will come back to you, about this time next year, and Sarah shall have a son.” Sarah denied she had laughed, because she was frightened; but he said, “Yes, you did laugh.”

Don’t you find this exchange marvellous, like father and daughter talking, two thousand years before Christ? Twenty centuries later, Mary didn’t laugh, on the day of the Annunciation when God’s messenger Gabriel came to visit her. She didn’t hesitate to question the angel — “How can this be? ... I am still a virgin” — and her magnificent “Yes” was to lead to the New Covenant between God and humankind. You see, it’s God himself who takes the initiative, preparing humanity for the revelation that he is a merciful God, the friend of humankind; he has to, because we are far, far from realising this ourselves. Then, it took time, the

time of the entire Old Testament, right up to the birth of Jesus; and, for many of us today, our whole lives! That’s what we call ... - ... conversion.

- Exactly. And it’s permanent. You see, our problem is that our hearts are hardened. In fact, we all spend our time doubting: God is

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invisible! No one has ever seen God! If he exists, why doesn’t he show himself? Then, we ask him for “miracles”, our own idea of miracles, and we don’t necessarily get what we want. - Even if we’ve been praying for ...

- That’s right. We all want God to perform miracles for us. In fact ... he does. He’s doing it all the time! - But not the ones we want!

- Not those we can see. Because God knows better than we do what’s good for us. His main concern is to change our hearts. He knows that’s the most important. How can he manage this without forcing us? Put yourselves in his place ... It’s not easy for him. - By signs? - Spot-on. More or less the only way he can reveal himself is by signals designed to catch our attention. It’s entirely up to us whether we see them or not. We’ve said it before: a miracle is something capable of arousing wonder, admiration — not something sensational. God avoids the spectacular! One of the primary objectives of a miracle is to fill the soul with a sense of wonder. Only hearts close to God, hearts that are pure, filled with the Holy Spirit, can marvel at the smallest things, the simplest occurrences. ‘Like small children, or those who have the heart of a child. Whether

you’re a shepherd or a Wise Man — I’m thinking of Christmas, when the shepherds and the Magi were the first to come to Bethlehem ... And these same souls don’t hesitate to ask God for the impossible. It was the same with the Virgin Mary. As soon as she knew she was with child, she ran to her cousin Elizabeth’s

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house, uttering the

TALKING ABOUT

MIRACLES — The miracles of the Bible

prayer we call the Magnificat: “... the Almighty has done great things for me”. Mary was the first for whom Jesus felt impelled to perform a miracle, to alter the natural order of things — by changing water into wine — in order to show his love. Did she have a miracle in mind when she innocently remarked to her Son at the marriage feast of Cana: “They have no wine left” (John 2:3)? No, of course not. But she was in the habit of asking God for the smallest things of everyday life with the natural candour of children, for whom everything is normal, and to whom no one can say no.

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“And 1988 was a Year of Mary!” A grandmother “23 November 1987. One of our grandchildren, Marie, aged eleven months, is very ill. She is in great pain and crying all the time. Doctors discover a huge malignant tumour occupying the whole pelvic region.

8 December, Feast of the Immaculate Conception. Her cancer has reached stage three; stage four means certain death. She starts chemotherapy. The Blessed Virgin is watching over her. We are filled with hope because the treatment is starting on this Holy Day. Everyone is praying. Marie finds her treatment hard to bear. I set out for Lourdes. There,

from the moment I open my eyes to the moment I go to sleep, I pray, washing and getting dressed, eating, walking about ... The weather is freezing and the water has ice on it, but I bathe twice a day in the sanctuary pools for our little Marie. In addition, I ask every priest, monk and nun I meet to pray for her. Marie’s condition begins to improve. 25 March 1988. End of Marie’s final chemotherapy course before first operation. Day of immense relief. Five days later, she develops a very serious allergy to an antibiotic. She has a brush with death ... but recovers. Three days before the operation, we gather at her ‘parents’ home to pray. The operation takes only three hours as against the expected six or seven. They have managed to remove the growth using new equipment delivered only three days ago! It aspirates the malignant area, leaving no after-effects.

11 June, Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Last day of final chemotherapy course following initial operation. Cancer not totally disappeared; second operation necessary before starting radiotherapy.

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8 September, Nativity of the Blessed Virgin. Radiotherapy finished. It dawns on us that every improvement in Marie’s condition coincides with a feast day of the Blessed Virgin. 21 November, Presentation of the Blessed Virgin in the Temple. The doctors at the Cancer Centre believe the outlook is good, but some of the bone scans are hard to interpret; they want to confer further. 8 December 1988. Inexplicably delayed, a letter finally arrives from the Cancer Centre confirming the favourable prognosis. This time it’s definite: Marie is cured! 8 December 1989. Last day of periodic check-up. The bone scans are perfect -2

Today, Marie is in perfect health. What a brilliant idea of her parents to name her after such a ‘patron saint’: the Queen of Heaven! Our granddaughter’s name is Marie ... and 1988 was a Year of Mary! One of my sons, an engineer, worked out the probability of this chain of events happening by chance. He reckoned it to be one in five million!”

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Chapter 9 The miracles of Jesus “When we preach the Word with signs, crowds assemble not only to hear, but see the word of Jesus fulfilled.” Emiliano Tardif - Can you tell us a bit about Jesus’ miracles ?

- Yes, I was coming to that. You know that, during his lifetime, Jesus in fact performed a lot of miracles, especially healing. One thing is certain: he never did a single miracle for himself. St Matthew’s Gospel (chapter 4) begins, in fact, by telling us what miracles aren’t — “non-miracles” or “anti-miracles”, if you like. Before beginning his public ministry, Jesus went into retreat in the desert. There he rejected Satan’s suggestions that he should perform miracles for himself to win fame and power. - Jesus never gives in to the temptation?

- Never. He heals through sheer compassion, or because he is touched by sufferers who pray to him, by their pain or infirmity, their great faith. He never gives the impression of dominating the world, doing indisputable miracles here, there and everywhere, compelling us to believe. And he doesn’t perform them to order, either; for example, when “the Pharisees came out and engaged him in a discussion, seeking a sign from heaven” (Mark 8:11). Finally, faith is a prerequisite for the performance of a miracle. “And he did not work many miracles there: such was their want of faith” (Matthew 13:58). A miracle only occurs in the context of an act of faith, or as a summons to conversion. As we said at the very start,

God isn’t there to clear up the mess we’ve made of things through our idleness, our carelessness or our failings! And Jesus never

behaves like a guru.

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- But the whole world would’ve followed him ... - Are you sure about that? Anyway, is that what he wanted? No, it definitely wasn’t. Jesus came to make visible the love of the Father, not only through the words we hear, but through actions we see, which reveal the Saviour of our souls and bodies. The salvation which consists in restoring our health. When God speaks, his word is fulfilled, is revealed through actions: the lame walk, the paralysed get up from their beds, the blind see. None of God’s promises remain merely words; they always come true, sooner or later. - Health?

- Bodily health, yes, as a sign of his omnipotence

but, more

importantly, of his love for all. The Father, touched by humankind’s

misery, sends his Son to heal us as a visible, tangible sign of what he is trying to do in our hearts. At the same time, he restores our spiritual health. The entire Bible is a cry of love from God to us, his creatures. We are not abandoned by God, but beloved by him. People who come to believe they are beloved children of the Father discover their spiritual health completely renewed. Finally, those who know they are loved by God can attain true psychological health, frequently through confessing their sins and being reconciled with their Maker: ““Your sins are forgiven” (Matthew 9:2). - Were all these miracles necessary? - Of course they were. You understand, all Jesus’ miracles have a purpose, a significance: they are suited to the spiritual well-being of the people he meets. He knows that, when the crowds see something astonishing, they have a tendency to remember only the visible part of the miracle, the sudden cure. “Hey, we’ve never seen anything like that before!’ Christ tries to get us to look further, gradually leading our hearts towards the mystery of salvation, of the Kingdom of God.

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- But we can’t escape death!

- But after death, Elisabeth, is there nothing? Is there only total non-existence? - Er, well...

[hope not. But who can tell? Nobody’s ever come back ...

- Ah, but Someone did come back and tell us — Jesus. The extreme form of miracle, the miracle of all miracles, is the Resurrection of

Christ. Which means he really is alive. And that we can meet him. Jesus came to proclaim the victory of life over death. Being a Christian means,

first and foremost, believing that death doesn’t

have the last word. Christ rescues us from death. By his own death, he conquered death. And if he rose from the dead, we too will rise again one day, just like him! - Yes, but the whole thing could’ve just been made up ...

- Hark at Doubting Thomas here! Look, those who told us the story held to their beliefs till death — they were even martyred for it. A lot of people don’t know that! - And you really believe that we can rise from the dead, with our bodies?

- Yes, I absolutely believe it. - But that’s crazy, man! You can’t explain that!

- No, I certainly can’t. But once again, just because we can’t explain it, does that make it untrue? Agreed, it’s a mystery, beyond our understanding at the present time, but that doesn’t make it impossible! Miracles are the sign of the gift of new life in Christ, who is divine life itself. Undoubtedly, as St Paul wrote, “Up to the

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present ... the whole created universe groans in all its parts, as if in the pangs of childbirth” (Romans 8:22). Our lives on earth are only the first steps towards that invisible world beyond space and time, Where we shall become all in all — absorbed once more into Eternity. Thus prepared, we shall live on in bodies still ours, different yet the same — not reincarnated, I mean, nor new bodies —

incorruptible, not of earthly substance, glorious, resurrected and fully and everlastingly healed.

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TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — The miracles of Jesus

“Do you ask him to cure you?” Nathalie Cordon interviewing Suzy Lionel on Radio-Présence N. Suzy, you’re married, the mother of three children, and you were trained as a nurse. Just two months after your marriage, something terrible happened to your life. What did you discover? S. I was twenty-three, and was suddenly struck down with chronic progressive polyarthritis. This is an inflammatory condition which gradually destroys the joints. With me, it started in the hips and spread extremely rapidly, causing me to age ten years in six months, without any medical explanation. I loved my job, but I suddenly had to pack it up. My marriage seemed in the balance ... Not easy to handle when you're twenty-three ...

N. How did you react to your body being invaded by this appalling thing? S. As a nurse, I knew this was no minor problem. I was up against a serious, incurable illness, the only outcome of which would be the

gradual destruction of my joints. It would mean permanent pain, day and night, whatever position I adopted. In addition, in my case, the arthritis proved particularly invasive and completely resistant to every type of medication, with lots of unpleasant side-effects. I was going through a really bad time. I also knew that it was quite out of the question to have children. N. How did this affect your husband? S. It affected both of us. As you can imagine, being in continual pain doesn’t exactly make for intimacy! At the same time, though, it made us stronger. In a strange kind of way, it reinforced our love and our marriage. They say you get married for better or for worse. We got through the worst; the best is still to come!

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N. You tried all sorts of alternative therapies, isn’t that so?

S. Yes. When you’re laid out with permanent pain, there are always well-meaning people saying, “Why don’t you go and see So-and-So or So-and-So.” Actually, I went to mind healers and so on, but I didn’t feel happy with it. I felt I couldn’t get into something that would drag me down spiritually. Illness is something you have to put up with, even if you rebel against it sometimes; but all the same, I didn’t have to surrender my conscience. N. It was then that someone mentioned a Christian medical practice? S. That’s right. I had a particular question to ask this doctor about the illness that was eating away at my body ... People were suggesting all these alternative therapies, but I didn’t have much confidence in them. What should we make of them? What does the Church say about that sort of thing? You never hear anyone mention that. His reply was that the Church would say, “Watch it, it’s dangerous! Stop now!” Coming as it did from a doctor, this made a deep impression. My husband had come along too. I said to him: “We've got to come to terms with this ... For me, things are clear. Maybe we can’t ever have children, but too bad! What’s certain is that I don’t want anything more to do with charlatans — they make me feel all wrong. In any case, if I’m going to get better, it'll be through God, or not at all.” N. 1987 was a special year, wasn’t it? You went on pilgrimage to Lourdes... S. Through cowardice, more or less — I was pushed into it by my mother! I found myself in the care of Lourdes Hospitality along with several other patients. | was offered a trolley, which I didn’t find easy to accept — it hurt my pride! But I finally realised I’d have to put myself in other people’s hands.

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— The miracles of Jesus

N. This was the big moment, then?

S. At the start, I was just a spectator. What was I doing there? Then I saw people who were very sick, but their faces were radiant ... More or less because I felt I had to, I attended the Anointing of the

Sick. I didn’t realise the significance of it, I felt such a wreck. In the huge underground basilica, someone approached me and asked: “Do you truly believe in the sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick? The entire Church bears the burden of the sick. The Church truly has this power. Everyone in this basilica is praying for the sick. In this Holy Oil is all the compassion of the Lord. Do you ask him to cure you?” “Er ... no!” I stammered. (How stupid can you be!) “Do you believe that the Lord wishes to touch you?” The question had to be repeated three times ... I finally blurted out: “Yes, I believe it:’

You aren’t alone on the road to recovery. You need to be carried, supported. Other people take the place of your crutches! This suddenly hit me there, in the basilica, with everyone praying all around me.

At that moment I felt God pausing beside this “ruin” I’d become because I felt so dirty, degraded. (A tactless doctor had put it like . that, and the word sort of stuck.) Yes, I felt God was capable of

pausing in front of this ruin and starting to rebuild it. N. So, this “ruin”, then ... You’re meaning a big repair job inside your body?

S. Absolutely.

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N. OK. You started to get better. Are you cured today? S. I’m getting better all the time. It’s taken several years. For the first few years, till my eldest daughter was born seven years later, my body had to undergo physical repair; it was completely deformed, shrunken and stiff as a result of all the wrong postures. I had to work hard at it; I had to do all sorts of stretching exercises

to realign my skeleton and get it back to its proper shape. N. But that wasn’t enough ...

S. No; I'd really got better in many ways, but my hips had suffered so much damage that I was told I needed artificial joints. The doctors urged me to have it done, but I didn’t want to undergo major surgery. I told myself, “If God doesn’t want me to make it, I won't.” But he did! N. How?

S. I fell flat on my face helping a friend’s little girl learn to walk. It was like falling into a world of total peace! I couldn’t get up again; I’d broken the neck of my femur. Now the fracture line was

just at the level of the femoral head, so they were able to insert an artificial joint. What more could you want for a sign? I was very happy; I didn’t have to make up my mind, God did it for me! It was a big operation (two prostheses inserted at an interval of three weeks), but I went through it confidently and recovered quickly, as I knew God had laid his hand on me. I had to accept that God and humankind can act in concert. The Lord also uses the medical profession to heal the sick. N. What’s the most extraordinary thing for you, out of all this?

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S. Living like anybody else again, doing all those everyday things. Today I live normally, like any other mother, any other Christian! Often you feel scared; you tell yourself the Lord asks the impossible of us. After all these years, I realise now he never asks us to do anything we can’t. N. If you had to put in a nutshell what this has meant for you as a Christian, what would you say? S. I learned I had to live my life without compromising with all the temptations of modern society, to try to live honestly ... And that makes me feel happy and free.

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TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Healing today

Chapter 10 Healing today “We thank you, O Lord, for all the signs of your presence, from the most spectacular cures to the most secret acts of healing ... May your light come and transfigure our entire beings: our hearts, our souls and our bodies. For your love, O Lord, is stronger than death.” Bernard of Clairvaux - So, after two thousand years of Christianity, God is still really healing people?

- The Bible doesn’t say that miraculous cures are reserved for any one period in history, Antoine! Malraux felt that the twenty-first century would be a spiritual or religious one. Personally, I'd say it'll be the century of the miracle. - You’re really serious? - Of course. - But why? - We’ve become so blasé! Every single one of us! During the last century, we saw everything. Every kind of “miracle”. You can contact anyone you like from wherever you like. In a flash, you can call up all possible information on any subject. But has that made the world any better? Isn’t there a risk of being preoccupied with the remote and forgetting what’s right in front of our eyes? God is more than ever forced to use miracles. Those which make people sit up and think. Tell me, what sort of thing really grabs you?

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- Loads of things!

- Lucky you! But you know what I mean: there are things that really hit us between the eyes, which appeal to the superficial part of our nature that craves self-expression, fun and excitement. Other things attract our inner selves — the part of us searching for the beautiful, the true, the good. What is it that basically makes us happy? - Things that bring us peace. - Precisely. Inner peace, the source of lasting joy. I come back to something I said earlier: the important thing is to listen to our hearts. That’s where everything we are comes together, the part of us controlling how we behave. And God is always present in our hearts. Mostly, we’re “out when God rings’, so he leaves a message in our hearts asking us to call back — to make or resume his acquaintance, so he can bring us the gift of his peace. - Does he always act in person?

- Good question. I can tell you, no, he doesn’t. His normal course of action is to rely on us. God needs us, all of us, to establish his reign of peace on earth. Before his Ascension, Jesus told his disciples: “Go forth to every part of the world, and proclaim the Good News to the whole Creation ... Faith will bring with it these miracles ... and the sick on whom they lay their hands will ’ recover.’ The apostles were frightened when Jesus disappeared from their mortal eyes at the Ascension but, when they received the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, they found the strength to go out and proclaim the Good News by healing hearts and bodies in his name.

The Holy Spirit is a living and powerful presence within the Church, which has always striven to fulfil this duty of healing. By works of compassion for the gravely ill, the development of care for

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people with disabilities, for instance. And through the mediation of the sacraments, signs of God’s saving grace. The latter include the Eucharist and its extension, the Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament,' an occasion of inner healing; Reconciliation (Confession),

where

we

make

amends

to God

and receive

his

pardon; the Anointing of the Sick, for the gravely ill. If we have faith, sacraments are miracles; they renew our lives and everything around us. History is full of stories of saints with healing gifts, who performed all sorts of miraculous cures. - And us?

- We are all, especially you young people, the apostles of the new century. Which means you are all called to be signs of Christ’s mercy, each in your own way, according to your particular talents and gifts. - What sort of “gifts”

?

- We’re talking about the Greek word charisma (in the theological sense, not the everyday one): the gift received from the Holy Spirit of doing good to others as a signal to the community of the faithful. It’s not a technique or medical procedure. The gift of healing can be given to one particular person to exercise a permanent ministry of healing. But healing can happen anywhere — “where two or three have met together in my name”. Compassion for our fellows, where Jesus is present through agape (charitable love, the love particularly associated with God), is sufficient for healing to take place. A united Christian community, praying in a spirit of love, has, of its own accord, the power to heal. Have we sufficient faith to dare to pray together in the name of Jesus for a sick person? - Er, not really ... And then, suppose that person isn’t healed?

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- You mean, if he or she isn’t cured physically? We have to pray, just that. That’s all the Lord asks of us. He performs the actions, does all the rest, whatever he thinks best for the particular person. And yes, it’s true, healing doesn’t always happen when we expect it. So we need to make sure what we mean by “healing”.

| Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament or Eucharistic Adoration: in the Catholic Church, a period when the consecrated Host (Communion Bread) is exposed on the altar in a special vessel (monstrance), for private prayer and contemplation.

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TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Healing today

“Many prayers were said for my recovery” :

Annick

“This all happened forty years ago, when I was scarcely four years old. At Christmas, 1960, I was ill all night, and the doctor discovered I had a cancer of the left kidney. Obviously, I was admitted straight to hospital. The summer before, my aunt had made a pilgrimage to Lourdes. She’d brought back some Holy Water, as you might expect, but also a fluorescent Virgin. I fell in love with it at once, and it’s never left me since. That went play me.

was the only personal item I took to hospital with me. I never anywhere without it. When treatment allowed, I was able to with other children on the ward, but Mary also accompanied The nurses used to say to one another: “Look at the little

sweetheart,

she’d make

anyone regain their faith. I never cried,

except when I was separated from my Virgin. Meanwhile, many prayers were said for my recovery. My parents were believers, and everyone who knew our family said novenas,' even schoolchildren; not only those who believed in God but the rest too. They brought along their piggy-banks for prayers to be said in church for me.

All around me, this little girl, an extraordinary prayer chain was formed. A convent of Carmelite nuns was praying for me too, as well as some White Fathers* my parents knew. When they heard what I was suffering from, they asked my parents to pray to Mary every day at the same time, so that even from a distance they could be united with them in prayer.

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I was given medallions of the Blessed Virgin, all of which I carried with me. So Mary was well and truly present, through the prayers of everyone, believers or not, who turned to her. The doctors, particularly two who were non-practising Jews, couldn’t believe what they saw; there was this feeling of the power of prayer all around me, and I was the only child who made no fuss about the treatments, never got tired, never cried, with none of the adverse effects associated with this gruelling sort of therapy that went on for months at a time. After three years, the doctors declared me totally cured. During that time, I went once every year with pilgrimage to Lourdes. There, I drank the waters, Mary like the adults, attended all the processions, I never cried, never got tired, such was my joy Maria.”

my mother on sang hymns to all the Masses. in singing Ave

Pad. ! Novena: nine days of prayer. in active especially volunteers, and nuns priests, of society missionary a 2 White Fathers: Africa.

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TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Healing the whole person

Chapter 11

Healing the whole person “When Jesus saves, he heals a person in every aspect of his being; he restores to that person his true dignity as a child beloved of the Father, whatever his present condition.” Etienne Garin - What’s the situation at Lourdes today?

- Apparently, there are fewer physical cures than a hundred years ago; but definitely more cures than ever ... - How do you mean?

- Well, fewer bodily cures, which is not surprising. Today, when we’re sick, we first look to medicine, and that’s a good thing. God also works through medicine: doctors, health professionals and everyone who looks after the sick. As a rough guide, though, in 2000 I received thirty declarations of physical cures, including three by e-mail from the USA. My first task is to authenticate such claims, in other words, check that the cure is real. For this, I use the evidence of all medical records prior to and after the healing. At the same time, I and any other doctors interested in the case try to find a possible natural or medical explanation. A lengthy inquiry is begun, which continues until it reaches a conclusion of “unexplained cure’. That’s as far as science can go. - And to make it a miracle?

- Recognition of a miracle is for the Church. The Church relies not only on the medical inquiry, but also the context of faith and prayer which could be significant in an unusual cure.

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- Can you prove a cure is unexplainable?

- Prove? No. Medicine isn’t an exact science, and its results vary with individuals. All we can do is arrive at a majority opinion, through our innermost convictions. A consensus, to use the modern term, of the Lourdes International Medical Committee (CMIL) comprising a score of specialists from all over Europe. But everything possible will have been done to establish the medical facts.

- Is it possible to prove a miracle?

- You can’t prove divine intervention scientifically. With such a phenomenon, there’s always an element of mystery; you either make a leap of faith — or you don’t. Nobody is forced to believe in miracles at Lourdes! It’s a matter for people to decide individually,

according to their own consciences. But there are two dangers to avoid. First, over-dependence on logic: “I don’t understand it, so it

must be wrong! Where’s the flaw?” But you can spend for ever looking for flaws and end up going round in circles. At a certain point, you come up against the mysterious. If I reject it, which is my right, that’s as far as I can go. On the other hand, I can decide I don’t

need logic, and accept every alleged cure. There the risk is even greater, that of falling into the trap of i//uminism — claiming that the truth is only available through mystical revelations. So there could be a huge number of miraculous healings if they weren't investigated properly. Agreed? - And, in fact, only sixty-six cures at Lourdes have been recognised as miraculous ...

- Right. Sixty-six physical cures out of more than six thousand declarations — we can’t count those never declared, which I reckon to be even more.

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- So healing is reserved for a handful, when you think of all the millions who’ve passed through Lourdes! If that’s true, it’s not fair! It’s like the Lottery: one or two lucky winners, and lots of losers ... - Ah, but it isn’t! - How come?

- The physical cures declared to the Medical Bureau are only the visible ones, ones you can analyse objectively. However, they serve to reveal, recall or confirm all the other kinds of cures, the invisible

ones, healing of the mind and spirit which many people claim to undergo on pilgrimage to Lourdes. True, many sick persons go home in the same physical condition — but radiant with a joy which totally transfigures their state of mind and leaves us astounded. What we are witnessing there is a transformation of their inner experiences, leaving them stronger to live through their sufferings, their illnesses, their handicaps. In itself, doesn’t that represent a form of healing which completely defies medical analysis? Not to mention the countless spiritual cures which take place during the sacrament of Reconciliation. - And they really happen?

- They’re as real as healing the internal organs. Physical healing is only the tip of the iceberg. It leads us to a much profounder form, the healing of the heart, which we all need. - What you call “inner healing”?

- Yes. Locked away inside all of us are memories full of pain and bitterness. Which of us could honestly say we’ve never in our lives been hurt by a lack of love, a spiteful word, a misplaced gesture? A blow, a shock, a disappointment, an injustice? Can any of us claim

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to have no need of healing: healing of the wounds of life? Not just to cheer ourselves up, but to experience a reconciliation based on love: reconciliation with ourselves, with others, or with God. That’s

why, I repeat, a miraculous cure is first and foremost the healing of the heart. In some cases, this can extend throughout the biological organism as a psychosomatic cure. Jesus not only wants to heal all people, but the whole person. - You say we can all be healed — but we need faith for that! - Not at all. Faith is a result, not a precondition. At Lourdes, for example, we see atheists cured, Muslims cured. Anyone can be healed. What counts is not individual faith or how “good” we are, but the faith of the people God gathers in this unique and sacred place. The faith, yes, and the prayers, the acts of compassion we witness here — those of all the volunteers who come along and put themselves at the service of their sick brothers and sisters. Under the eyes of Mary, Mother of God, who requested through Bernadette that pilgrims come here in procession, these “saintly” folk form a body, the body of Christ, which is in itself capable of healing. What we also call the “Communion of Saints”, including all the baptised, whose grace overflows upon the whole of humanity. No, no way is it like the Lottery with the Lord! Christ is everyone’s physician. Physical cures are gifts for everybody, not exceptions or privileges for the lucky few. All of us can benefit

from “divine therapy”’.

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“Lord, I love you ...”

.

Marie-Amélie, aged 20

“Looking back as a new convert, I can tell you it was touch and go! I went through a horrific period in my teens, involving me in a lot of suffering and unhappiness, not only ruining my body but leaving me an emotional and spiritual wreck. I’d decided I was going to do exactly what pleased me and to hell with the rest ... Most of my time in high school, I spent the holidays having ‘fun’, pulling all sorts of stunts that completely destroyed me and caused a lot of harm to my family and friends. I was always going out partying: ‘parties from hell’ is the best way to describe them. Drugs, sex and booze were all that counted. Then it went beyond wild flings and took over my whole life. Nothing else mattered any more. I just lived from day to day, not caring what was right or wrong; nothing was off limits any more. I totally shut out everybody around me except other kids who shared my lifestyle. My descent into hell had begun! I wrecked my body and my whole self. My personality disintegrated; I just aped the other kids in the gang. My life wasn’t mine any more. My parents forced me to go to Mass every Saturday evening; I found it a real pain. I felt so out of place there I used to start crying and beg not to have to go. Despite rejecting the Church, I got to know someone there: the parish priest. He was a star; he didn’t want me to come to Mass because I had to. He saw me crying; he didn’t say anything, but his silence was full of concern and prayer. One day he told me he was there to help. But I never had time to tell him everything I was going through, as God called him back to him a few weeks later. So I found myself even more alone. It was summer, and I knew the vacation would destroy me again, like the year before. Then, a few

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days before the holidays started, a priest I hardly knew proposed I go on a five-day pilgrimage to Lourdes with some teenagers I’d never seen. My first reaction was to laugh — it was the dumbest thing anyone had ever suggested! So he’d leave me alone, I said it was impossible, I was about to find work and needed the money, but if things didn’t turn out, I'd go on his pilgrimage ... A few days later, my plan to get work fell through; the boss found someone else. I didn’t know what to do any more; I’d promised this priest to go on his pilgrimage, but I dreaded the idea of it. The day before it was due to start, I went round to see him and tell him I wouldn’t be coming. When I was face to face with him, I only managed to blurt out one thing: ‘I’m coming with you to Lourdes!’ After I'd said this, I felt kind of really weird inside; I’d come to say No, and my heart had said Yes! Next morning, I set out for Lourdes with some

twenty kids who

were total strangers, four adult monitors and this priest. The first hours in the train were very hard: I wished I hadn’t come and, what was worse, it was a special train with a guy saying prayers over the speaker system ... Definitely not my scene!

One of the adults, a woman, discussed Confirmation with me. I explained there was no way I wanted to be confirmed. Then I sat on my own for a bit to think. She was sitting not far away, and I was watching her. She was holding a rosary and reciting it along with the guy at the ’ microphone. I wondered what it was like to do this stuff, so I quietly slipped over and sat beside her. Then I began to say a ‘Hail, Mary’, and then a second, a third ... I felt a calm and peace coming over me like I’d never known for ages ...

When we got to Lourdes, we went to see the video about this girl Bernadette, and in the evening we visited the grotto where she saw Mary. I couldn’t get my head round what was the fascination of this

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place — a former pigsty where everyone comes and prays to a rock and a statue supposed to be thé woman Bernadette saw. When I got to the front of the queue, my attention was drawn by a woman there, kneeling in a puddle. Her feet were bare; she was wearing a long poncho and was staring in the direction of the grotto. Instantly there was like a creepy sensation — real weird. I didn’t know what she could see, but it made her look kind of beautiful ... Later, when I thought back, I realised there wasn’t anything to see in the grotto, but everything to give: especially love, and all the suffering inside of me! Next day, I didn’t want to go back; something had happened inside me the day before that really freaked me. But a new friend — we’d really taken to each other — held my hand and helped me go back in the grotto. The further I walked in, the more I felt my fear vanish and give way to prayer. As the days went by, I discovered there was Someone who loved me and was begging me to open my heart to him. My most beautiful encounter of love with him took place during the Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, a form of prayer I’d never heard of before. We were in this chapel, all our little group. The priest was kneeling in front of the altar; on it was something made of gold, and inside it the Host, which we’d just been told was Jesus Christ. We quit talking, and the priest began to pray out loud. Then he went quiet. Until the end of the Adoration, the only other thing he said was ‘I love you’. These words opened up my heart. These weren’t just words, they were a cry of love. When I heard this declaration to Jesus, tears began to stream down my face. I begged the Lord to take me, take away whatever was in my heart, as it was hurting me so much. I wanted him to take everything away so he could come and live there. I began to change, without understanding what was happening to me. Little by

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little, the Lord was assuming an important place in my life. I was realising at last that he was there, that he was waiting for me! The following day, someone talked to us about Confession. Thanks to this person, I went to Confession for the first time in my life. I presented myself to a priest, feeling all nervous. I felt all dirty with sin, too, and didn’t know what to do. I was scared and full of shame ... The priest suggested I pray to the Holy Spirit and tell God all the bad things I'd done and which had taken me away from him. That was hard, as I’d all sorts of things to tell him, but I didn’t know how to ... I’d been talking for a long while, when the feeling of shame disappeared, and I finally poured out everything to him. When the priest gave me Absolution in the name of Jesus, it was like I was suddenly set free; something inside me, which had been hurting for ages, had just vanished. The Lord had delivered me from everything that was tearing me apart. For the first time I felt my heart sort of smile ... Coming back home wasn’t easy; maybe I’d changed, but the friends I hung out with hadn’t ... Then, with God’s help, I decided to clean

things up around me. I dropped some of my mates, I learned to say No to things I knew were wrong. I showed other people I’d changed, and that now I wanted to move on and grow up with God. A lot of people didn’t understand what was happening to me; most of them thought I was nuts! Sometimes this was really embarrassing, and it hurt. But I knew I wasn’t fighting alone. It was only the start of a hard journey, but I knew I was on the right road! It took me sixteen years to realise that happiness comes only from God. When that finally dawned on me, I too, like the priest before the Blessed Sacrament, felt the urge to exclaim, ‘Lord, I love you’. pe

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Conclusion

Do you want to be cured? “We have made of God (as Man always has) an explanation of the world as it is ... But Jesus leads us to the discovery of a world yet to be.” Maurice Zundel - How do you set about being healed? - The first and most basic point is that you have to admit there’s something wrong: you, yourself. Don’t beat around the bush; you have to say, “It’s me who needs healing, it’s me who can be healed.”

This isn’t as obvious as it seems. All our injuries — not just physical but those of the mind, the heart, the spirit or the soul — cause us

pain, and often that pain comes from several of those sources at once. And because it hurts, we don’t want to drag it out into the open and confront it. But at some stage in our lives we’ve got to have the courage to do so, without blaming ourselves or looking round for someone else to blame. We need to begin by admitting we’re suffering, and even love ourselves in that state! - You really believe we’re all wounded in some way?

- All of us, without exception, young and old. But since hurting, we prefer not to think about it: a normal reaction. But don’t seek help, not only do we damage ourselves, we also other people: our wounds poison our existence and that of close to us.

- What sort of wounds?

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- Every sort! Our minds can be wounded, if we’re stubbornly incredulous, if we denigrate everything. If we can’t stop ourselves pinching things, cheating, copying. If we worship the wrong things: money, glamorous lifestyles, fashions, image, designer brands. If I’m only turned on when I’m chilling out on the beach or in front of the TV, or clubbing or going to movies or playing computer games — having fun, in other words — aren’t I really a sort of slave? Don’t I need healing? We could also mention superstition and dabbling with the occult; wanting to know the future, holding seances, and so on — these things always backfire. Then there are emotional wounds: lack of willpower, laziness, hunger for power, the need to dominate, to dazzle, to please, to charm, to deceive ... Our bodies can be wounded, if we let ourselves go, indulging in all sorts of abuses which wreck our physical health: eating, drinking, smoking, sex, drugs.

- But often we’re the victims of abuses like that, aren’t we? - True; wounds are actually the consequences of sin. But not always other people’s sins, our own can damage us too. In any case, we can’t heal our own wounds. Don’t let’s imagine that — or that we’ll get well just sitting there doing nothing! We need to get help. - How?

- Firstly, the time comes to make up our minds, and the sooner the

’ better — to reach out for the means to heal ourselves, of our own free will; come down one way or the other, stop dilly-dallying, grasp the nettle. Yes or No. Choose between the good and evil we’re all born with. We have to take a step, the first step. Specialists agree today that mind and spirit overlap, and recovery demands the healing of both. Obviously, if someone is suffering from mental problems of a pathological nature, some sort of psychotherapy may be indispensable. But spiritual therapy should also be considered.

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MIRACLES — Conclusion

Most frequently, this takes the form of the sacrament of Reconciliation, which allows the participant to begin a procedure of forgiveness. Don’t you think that asking forgiveness with all your heart from someone you “wish were dead” is a real miracle? In the full sense of the word. Forgiveness, usually beyond our meagre human resources, requires a higher, spiritual power, and it brings about real healing of both parties. Forgiveness is a miracle of healing. - And what about praying for healing?

- Prayer is part of the spiritual armoury which the Church offers us. During prayer meetings when we put ourselves in the hands of the Holy Spirit, we pray with and for sufferers, asking God to give them relief and respite, even to cure them. Some people enjoy the gift of knowledge: they can state aloud the consolation, liberation or healing about to befall such and such a participant. The people concerned recognise themselves through a detailed form of identification; the Spirit moves within them, and they receive the corresponding blessings. - And that’s really possible?

- Yes, but it’s always the Lord healing through the Holy Spirit. It’s not magic! Remember, inner healing doesn’t take place in a flash, which can sometimes happen with physical cures. It’s a road you have to follow, a pilgrimage to be pursued day after day, in a spirit of faith, and giving yourself every possible means of success. - What’s the Virgin Mary got to do with healing? - She intercedes for us, asks God to heal us. So we can look to her

for help any time, anywhere, like children: “Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now, and at the hour of our death ...”

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TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Conclusion

- And at Lourdes?

- Because of divine initiative, and Mary’s mediation in this holy place, Lourdes is a powerful and permanent centre of healing. Here we have a Christian community assembled; people of all nations, ethnic groups, races, languages, the well and the sick (recognised as persons in their own right); this community is united in faith, prayer, charity and alms, in a place where once Bernadette saw heaven open. The Virgin asked her, “Will you do me the favour of coming here for fifteen days?” Here, we can lay down our burdens, reveal our wounds, make our gestures of faith, free of charge, and in a concrete, meaningful way. And everyone’s free to go where he or she likes — the grotto, the pools, the Way of the Cross, or to the Adoration

of the

Sacrament

in one

or

other

of the chapels,

especially the Chapel of Reconciliation. Come along and try it; experience how, even today, heaven still opens for everyone! - And your final word?

- Well, if you need one, I’d say this. The twentieth century generated so much suffering; now the world has more need of you than ever, you young people, to prove through your lives that good is stronger and has deeper roots than evil. If you discover Christ personally in your hearts, and if you begin a life of giving to others and placing yourself in his hands, you will bring God into the world. Our human nature, our history will regain its proper values, ~ values in which his presence can dwell, until he returns in glory. - That'd be the ultimate miracle!

- Now that’s something I wouldn’t argue with ...

oy

TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Finding out more about Lourdes

Finding out more about Lourdes NOTE: When calling France from outside that country: (1) Dial the international prefix (e.g. 00 from UK) (2) Dial country code for France (33) (3) Drop the 0 from the ten-figure numbers given below; then dial remaining nine numbers. General information Sanctuaires de Lourdes, 1, av. Mgr-Théas, 65108 Lourdes, France Tel: 05 62 42 78 78, ext. 6200 Fax: 05 62 42 89 54 e-mail: saccueil @lourdes-france.com

Multilingual web sites www.lourdes-france.com www.lourdes-france.org/bonjour.htm (both include history, webcam, sound clips, maps, details of pilgrimages/activities, links to accommodation pages, travel agents, etc.) Lourdes Medical Bureau and International Medical Association Bureau médical, 1, av. Mgr-Théas, 65108 Lourdes, France Tel: 05 62 42 79 08 Fax: 05 62 42 79 77 e-mail: bmedical @ lourdes-france.com The Bureau issues the Bulletin of the International Asssociation (Fons Vitae) quarterly, in five languages. The deals with questions concerning miraculous cures from practical aspect (medical and spiritual observations)

Medical Bulletin both the and the

theoretical (reflections on links between science and faith). Articles

are based on the holistic study of the human personality in all its dimensions: mind, body and soul.

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TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Finding out more about Lourdes

Lourdes-Magazine (monthly) “A magazine for pilgrims of the third millennium, serving the cause of the New Evangelism.” Information and subscriptions: | avenue Mgr-Théas, 65108 Lourdes, France Tel: 05 62 42 78 78 e-mail: lourdes.magazine @lourdes-france.com

Youth Service To arrange a pilgrimage, contact: Service Jeunes Tel: 05 62 42 78 38 Fax; 05°62 42 8953 e-mail: sjeunes @lourdes-france.com To arrange accommodation at the Sanctuaries: Village des jeunes

els 05:02°42 79.95 Fax: 05 62 42 79 98 e-mail: village.jeunes @ lourdes-france.com Scouts and Guides (camping, service to community and pilgrims): Accueil Scouts — Service Jeunes Tel: 05 62 42 78 38 Fax: 05 62 42 89 53 e-mail: sjeunes @lourdes-france.com Short-term (approx. two weeks) volunteer guides, etc. at Lourdes: Service Jeunes Tel: 05 62 42 78 38 Fax: 05 62 42 89 53 e-mail: sjeunes @lourdes-france.com

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TALKING ABOUT MIRACLES — Finding out more about Lourdes

Young people’s video Fifty-minute video on sale at the Librairie des Sanctuaires. Tel*05 4276217961

Ecole de l’Evangile (Bible College) International one-year course for young people aged twenty to twenty-five, comprising Bible studies and service to other young people and the sick. Information: Tel: 05 62 94 25 43 or 05 62 42 78 20 Fax: 05 62 42 79 98 Address: Village des jeunes, rue Mgr-Rodhain, 65108 Lourdes, France e-mail: ecole.evangile @ lourdes-france.com

94

“Dr Patrick Theillier could be described as the ‘miracle doctor’ of Lourdes. He doesn’t perform miracles, but he sees all the

patients who have undergone unexpected cures connected with the shrine. In a few cases, his investigations produce sufficiently precise data for the Church to recognise the cure as ‘miraculous’. However, Dr Theillier sees all sorts of cures, not only those submitted to a lengthy process of investigation. Physical cures, yes, but also healing of the mind, healing of personal relationships. Surely the reconciliation of a couple — a rare and demanding achievement — is just as much a miracle as the cures made possible by modern medicine? Like his predecessors, the author receives countless questions about miracles — from the media and the medical profession, but also from numerous groups of young people.

In this fascinating book Dr Theillier explains how miracles — in the accepted sense of exceptional occurrences — reveal something about ordinary Christian faith, about God the Father,

and humanity in general.”

Mor Jacques Perrier, Bishop of Tarbes and Lourdes.

ISBN 0 45231 e&e-2

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