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Our Lady of Lourdes

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Our Lady of Lourdes / the Immaculate Conception
Reported event Eighteen reported appearances of the Blessed Virgin Mary to Bernadette Soubirous at Massabielle
Place Lourdes, Hautes-Pyrénées, France
Dates associated with the event 11 February–16 July 1858
Witnesses Bernadette Soubirous
Ecclesial status Favorable supernatural judgment
Public devotion Authorized
Competent authority Bertrand-Sévère Laurence, Bishop of Tarbes
Judgment date 1862-01-18

Our Lady of Lourdes is a Catholic Marian title and manifestation tradition associated with Lourdes, Hautes-Pyrénées, France. Its exact ecclesial status is favorable supernatural judgment; that status governs what may truthfully be said about the reported event and the devotion connected with it.[1][2]

Devotional status: Approved devotion

Overview

Our Lady of Lourdes (French: Notre-Dame de Lourdes; Occitan: Nòstra Senhora de Lorda) is one of the devotional names or titles under which the Catholic Church venerates the Virgin Mary. The name commemorates a series of 18 apparitions reported by a 14-year-old girl, Bernadette Soubirous, in Lourdes, France in 1858. After the first reported apparition on 11 February 1858, Bernadette told her mother that a "Lady" had spoken to her in the cave of Massabielle (1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi) from the town) while Bernadette, her sister, and a friend were gathering firewood.[3] Bernadette reported similar apparitions of the "Lady" over the ensuing weeks, in the last of which the "Lady" identified herself as "the Immaculate Conception".[4] On 18 January 1862, the local Bishop of Tarbes Bertrand-Sévère Laurence endorsed the veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Lourdes.

On 1 February 1876, Pope Pius IX officially granted a decree of canonical coronation to the image as Notre-Dame du Saint Rosaire. The coronation was performed by Cardinal Pier Francesco Meglia at the courtyard of what is now part of the Rosary Basilica on 3 July 1876.[5][6]

The image of Our Lady of Lourdes has been widely copied and reproduced in shrines and homes, often in garden landscapes. Bernadette Soubirous was canonized by Pope Pius XI in 1933.[7][8]

Marian devotion has since steadily increased as ecclesiastical investigations sanctioned her visions. In later years, a large church was built at the site that has since[9] become a major site of religious pilgrimage.

Reported event

Eighteen reported appearances of the Blessed Virgin Mary to Bernadette Soubirous at Massabielle. The tradition locates the event at Lourdes, Hautes-Pyrénées, France and associates it with 11 February–16 July 1858.[1]

The identified witness or witnesses are Bernadette Soubirous (visionary). The cited article reports the tradition according to its competent ecclesial sources; it does not fill gaps with later devotional embroidery or treat every attributed message and anecdote as part of the authoritative judgment.[1][10]

Ecclesiastical judgment

The Bishop declared that Mary Immaculate, Mother of God, really appeared to Bernadette and that the apparition bears every characteristic of truth. The competent authority was Bertrand-Sévère Laurence, Bishop of Tarbes, acting with respect to Diocese of Tarbes. The recorded judgment date is 1862-01-18, and its defined scope is The eighteen Massabielle appearances reported by Bernadette between 11 February and 16 July 1858.[1][2]

The cited competent authority made an affirmative judgment concerning the reported event's supernatural character under the discipline then in force. The historical act remains a real favorable judgment, although it neither adds to Public Revelation nor imposes belief as a dogma. A positive private-revelation judgment does not make the event part of the deposit of faith or oblige belief.[2][11]

Devotion and reception

Public devotion connected with Our Lady of Lourdes / the Immaculate Conception is authorized within the scope expressed by the competent acts. This permits Catholic prayer, pilgrimage, liturgical or shrine life, and pastoral reception only as those acts actually provide; local and universal observance remain distinct.[1][2]

A devotional permission is not a blank authorization for commercial exploitation, sensational predictions, disobedience, novel doctrine, or every text circulated under an apparition's name. Pastors retain responsibility for sound catechesis, the Sacraments, protection of the faithful, and any qualifications or restrictions attached to the judgment.[1][2]

Relation to Catholic faith

Public Revelation is complete in Jesus Christ and transmitted in Scripture and Apostolic Tradition. A Marian apparition cannot add to the Deposit of Faith, correct the Gospel, or create an alternate teaching office. At most, an authentic private revelation helps the faithful live Christ's definitive Revelation more fully in a particular historical setting.[12][13]

No Catholic is obliged to accept a private revelation as an article of divine and Catholic faith, even when competent authority has made a favorable judgment. Catholics must, however, respect the Church's actual permissions, cautions, and prohibitions. Exact terminology safeguards both legitimate Marian devotion and the primacy of Christ, whose grace alone gives every authentic apparition its meaning.[12][11]

Apparitions

On 11 February 1858, Soubirous went with her sister Toinette and neighbor Jeanne Abadie to collect some firewood. While taking off her shoes and stockings to wade through the water near the Grotto of Massabielle, she said she heard the sound of two gusts of wind (coups de vent) but the trees and bushes nearby did not move. A wild rose in a natural niche in the grotto, however, did move.

I came back towards the grotto and started taking off my stockings. I had hardly taken off the first stocking when I heard a sound like a gust of wind. Then I turned my head towards the meadow. I saw the trees quite still: I went on taking off my stockings. I heard the same sound again. As I raised my head to look at the grotto, I saw a lady dressed in white, wearing a white dress, a blue girdle and a yellow rose on each foot, the same color as the chain of her rosary; the beads of the rosary were white... From the niche, or rather the dark alcove behind it, came a dazzling light.[14]

Soubirous tried to make the sign of the cross but could not, as her hands were trembling. The lady smiled, and invited Soubirous to pray the rosary with her.[15] Soubirous tried to keep this a secret, but Toinette told her mother. After parental cross-examination, she and her sister received corporal punishment for their story.[16]

Three days later, 14 February, Soubirous returned to the grotto. She had brought holy water as a test that the apparition was not of evil origin/provenance: "The second time was the following Sunday... Then I started to throw holy water in her direction, and at the same time I said that if she came from God she was to stay, but if not, she must go. She started to smile, and bowed... This was the second time."[17]

Soubirous' companions are said to have become afraid when they saw her in ecstasy. She remained ecstatic even as they returned to the village. On 18 February, she spoke of being told by the Lady to return to the Grotto over a period of two weeks. She quoted the apparition: "The Lady only spoke to me the third time... She told me also that she did not promise to make me happy in this world, but in the next."[16]

Soubirous was ordered by her parents to never go there again. She went anyway, and on 24 February, Soubirous related that the apparition asked for prayer and penitence for the conversion of sinners.

The next day, she said the apparition asked her to dig in the ground and drink from the spring she found there. This made her dishevelled and some of her supporters were dismayed, but this act revealed the stream that soon became a focal point for pilgrimages.[18] Although it was muddy at first, the stream became increasingly clean. As word spread, this water was given to medical patients of all kinds, and many reports of miraculous cures followed. Seven of these cures were confirmed as lacking any medical explanations by Professor Verges in 1860. The first person with a "certified miracle" was a woman whose right hand had been deformed as a consequence of an accident. Several miracles turned out to be short-term improvement or even hoaxes, and Catholic Church and government officials became increasingly concerned.[19] The government fenced off the grotto and issued stiff penalties for anybody trying to get near the off-limits area. In the process, Lourdes became a national issue in France, resulting in the intervention of Emperor Napoleon III with an order to reopen the grotto on 4 October 1858. The Church had decided to stay away from the controversy altogether.

Soubirous, knowing the local area well, managed to visit the barricaded grotto under cover of darkness. There, on 25 March, she said she was told: "I am the Immaculate Conception" ("que soy era immaculada concepciou"). On Easter Sunday, 7 April, her examining doctor stated that Soubirous, in ecstasy, was observed to have held her hands over a lit candle without sustaining harm. On 16 July, Soubirous went for the last time to the grotto. "I have never seen her so beautiful before," she reported.[19]

The Catholic Church, faced with nationwide questions, decided to institute an investigative commission on 17 November 1858. On 18 January 1860, the local bishop finally declared that: "The Virgin Mary did appear indeed to Bernadette Soubirous."[19] These events established the Marian veneration in Lourdes, which together with Fátima and the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe is one of the most frequented Marian shrines in the world, and to which between 4 and 6 million pilgrims travel annually.

In 1863, Joseph-Hugues Fabisch was charged to create a statue of the Virgin according to Soubirous's description. The work was placed in the grotto and solemnly dedicated on 4 April 1864 in presence of 20,000 pilgrims.

The veracity of the apparitions of Lourdes is not an article of faith for Catholics. Nevertheless, all recent popes have visited the Marian shrine at some time. Benedict XV, Pius XI, and John XXIII went there as bishops, Pius XII as papal delegate. He also issued an encyclical, Le pèlerinage de Lourdes, on the one-hundredth anniversary of the apparitions in 1958. John Paul II visited Lourdes three times during his pontificate, and twice before as a bishop.

Bernadette's description of Mary

Soubirous described the apparition as a jeune fille ("young girl") of about 14–15 years old; Soubirous insisted that the apparition was no taller than herself. At 1.40 metres (4 ft 7 in) tall, Soubirous was diminutive even by the standards of other poorly-nourished children.[20]

Soubirous described the apparition as dressed in a flowing white robe, with a blue sash around her waist. This was the uniform of a religious group called the Children of Mary, which, on account of her poverty, Soubirous was not permitted to join (although she was admitted after the apparitions).[21] Her aunt Bernarde was a long-time member.

The statue that currently stands in the niche within the grotto of Massabielle was created by the Lyonnais sculptor Joseph-Hugues Fabisch in 1864. Although it has become an iconographic symbol of Our Lady of Lourdes, it depicts a figure which is not only older and taller than Soubirous' description, but also more in keeping with orthodox and traditional representations of the Virgin Mary. On seeing the statue, Soubirous was profoundly disappointed with this representation of her vision.[22]

Similar events

In nearby Lestelle-Bétharram, only a few kilometres from Lourdes, some shepherds guarding their flocks in the mountains observed a vision of a ray of light that guided them to the discovery of a statue of the Virgin Mary. Two attempts were made to remove the statue to a more prominent position; each time it disappeared and returned to its original location, at which a small chapel was built for it.[23]

In the early 16th century, a 12-year-old shepherdess called Anglèze de Sagazan received a vision of the Virgin Mary near the spring at Garaison (part of the commune of Monléon-Magnoac), somewhat further away. Anglèze's story is strikingly similar to that of Soubirous: she was a pious but illiterate and poorly educated girl, extremely impoverished, who spoke only in the local language, Gascon Occitan, but successfully convinced authorities that her vision was genuine and persuaded them to obey the instructions of her apparitions. Like Soubirous, she was the only one who could see the apparition (others could apparently hear it); however, the apparition at Garaison's supernatural powers tended toward the miraculous provision of abundant food, rather than healing the sick and injured. Mid-nineteenth century commentators noted the parallels between the events at Massabielle and Garaison, and interpreted the similarities as proof of the divine nature of Soubirous' claims.[24] At the time of Soubirous, Garaison was a noted center of pilgrimage and Marian devotion.

There are also several similarities between the apparition at La Salette, near Grenoble, and Lourdes. La Salette is many hundreds of kilometres from Lourdes, and the events at La Salette predate those in Lourdes by 12 years. However, the Marian apparition at La Salette was tall and maternal (not petite and gentle like her Lourdes apparition) and had a darker, more threatening series of messages. It is not certain if Soubirous was aware of the events at La Salette.[25]

Approval by a local bishop

On 18 January 1862, the Bishop of Tarbes Betrand Severt Laurence declared the following regarding the Marian apparitions:

We are inspired by the Commission comprising wise, holy, learned and experienced priests who questioned the child, studied the facts, examined everything and weighed all the evidence. We have also called on science, and we remain convinced that the Apparitions are supernatural and divine, and that by consequence, what Soubirous saw was the Most Blessed Virgin. Our convictions are based on the testimony of Soubirous, but above all on the things that have happened, things which can be nothing other than divine intervention.[26]

Pontifical approbations

  • Pope Pius IX approved the veneration in Lourdes and supported the building of the Cathedral in 1870 to which he donated several gifts. He approved indulgences and issued a canonical coronation to the courtyard image of the basilica on 1 February 1876. The coronation ceremony was performed by Cardinal Meglia on 3 July 1876.[27]
  • Pope Leo XIII issued an apostolic letter Parte Humanae Generi in commemoration of the consecration of the new cathedral in Lourdes in 1879. He later issued a decree for a canonical coronation towards an image of Lourdes for Pondicherry, India on 21 February 1886. The rite of coronation was carried on 8 May 1886.[28] The same pontiff also made comparative remarks to the Basilica of Our Lady of Brebières remarking it as "The Lourdes of the North" due to the influx of Marian pilgrims and miraculous claims of healings attached to the site.
  • As Archbishop of Bologna, Archbishop Giacomo della Chiesa (the future Pope Benedict XV) organized a diocesan pilgrimage to Lourdes, requesting for Marian veneration in that area.
  • Pope Pius X in 1907 introduced the feast of the apparition of the Immaculate Virgin of Lourdes. In the same year he issued his encyclical Pascendi Dominici gregis, in which he specifically repeated the permission to venerate the virgin in Lourdes.[29]
  • Pope Pius XI beatified the Marian visionary Bernadette Soubirous on 6 June 1925 and canonized her on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception on 8 December 1933 and determined her feast day to be 18 February.[30][31] He later on 16 July 1934 issued a decree Edocemur Admomum confirming privileges of patronage for an image with the same namesake for the Church of Saint Martin in Stella, Liguria, in Savona, Italy. This document was signed by Cardinal Eugenio Pacelli. Later in 1937, the pope sent the same cardinal as his legate to personally visit the sanctuary at Lourdes.
  • Pope Pius XII issued a papal encyclical Le pèlerinage de Lourdes on the 100th centenary anniversary of the Marian apparitions of Lourdes.
  • As Archbishop of Milan, Giovanni Battista Montini (the future Pope Paul VI) visited Lourdes.
  • Pope John Paul II made three religious pilgrimages to Lourdes. He also instituted the World Day of the Sick in honor of Our Lady of Lourdes on 13 May 1992.
  • Pope Benedict XVI issued a novelty coronation towards the Lourdes image on World Day of the Sick in 2007. In September 2008, he visited Lourdes commemorating the 150th anniversary of the Marian apparitions.
  • Pope Francis granted a canonical coronation towards a Lourdes image for the Philippines on 5 September 2019. The coronation took place on 22 August 2020.

Reported healings

The location of the spring was allegedly described to Soubirous by an apparition of Our Lady of Lourdes on 25 February 1858. Since that time many thousands of pilgrims to Lourdes have followed the instruction attributed to Our Lady of Lourdes to "drink at the spring and wash in it".

Lourdes water has become a focus of devotion to the Virgin Mary at Lourdes. The Catholic Church permits the water's consumption and use by bathers and other visitors to Lourdes, but the Church has taken no position concerning the water's supposed healing properties. Since the apparitions, many people have claimed to have been cured by drinking or bathing in it,[32] and the Lourdes authorities provide it free of charge to any who ask for it.[33]

An analysis of the water was commissioned by then mayor of Lourdes, Monsieur Anselme Lacadé in 1858. It was conducted by a professor in Toulouse, who determined that the water was potable and that it contained the following: oxygen, nitrogen, carbonic acid, carbonates of lime and magnesia, a trace of carbonate of iron, an alkaline carbonate or silicate, chlorides of potassium and sodium, traces of sulphates of potassium and soda, traces of ammonia, and traces of iodine.[34] Essentially, the water is pure and inert. Lacadé had hoped that Lourdes water might have special mineral properties which would allow him to develop Lourdes into a spa town, to compete with neighbouring Cauterets and Bagnères-de-Bigorre.[32] Skeptical responses to those reports often claim that auto-suggestion and the placebo effect were the cause of those healings after pilgrimage to the sanctuary.[35][36]

The Lourdes Medical Bureau

To ensure claims of cures were examined properly and to protect the town from fraudulent claims of miracles, the Lourdes Medical Bureau (Bureau Medical) was established at the request of Pope Pius X. It is completely under medical rather than ecclesiastical supervision. Approximately 7,500[37] people have sought to have their case confirmed as a miracle, of which 70[38][39] have been declared scientifically inexplicable by the bureau.[40] The methodological procedures of the bureau have received numerous criticisms over the years, and the healings sometimes considered to be a "neuropsychiatric phenomenon".[41] Some have coined the Lourdes effect to describe how none of the healings have involved dramatic, unambiguous events growing back a limb but inconclusive and opaque results.[42]

Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes

The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes is a group of churches, religious buildings and places of worship on the site where the Lourdes apparitions occurred in 1858, in the town of Lourdes, in France. The area is owned and administered by the Catholic Church and is a destination for millions of pilgrims coming to venerate Our Lady of Lourdes. The sanctuary holds devotional activities, offices, and ensures accommodation for pilgrims with disabilities and those assisting them. The 52 hectares area of the sanctuary includes the grotto of Massabielle where Bernadette Soubirous is said to have seen the Virgin Mary and three basilicas, known as the Upper Basilica, the Lower Basilica and the Underground Basilica. It also includes a church, several chapels, a calvary on a hill, an area of ground for gatherings, a square and alleys for processions, fountains providing Lourdes water to pilgrims, baths for immersion in Lourdes water, residences for sick and disabled pilgrims, and the offices of the Lourdes Medical Bureau.[43] The sanctuary is visited by millions each year, and Lourdes has become one of the prominent pilgrimage sites of the world. Large numbers of pilgrims travel to Lourdes each year in the hope of physical healing or spiritual renewal.

Other places of veneration

Venerated images with pontifical decree

  • Pope Pius IX granted a decree of coronation towards the image at the courtyard of the Rosary Basilica in Lourdes, France, on 1 February 1876.
  • Pope Leo XIII let the image of the high altar in the Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes in Pondicherry, India, crowned via decree on 21 February 1886.
  • The image enshrined at the parish of Saint Martin in Stella, Savona, Italy, was crowned in July 1909; Pope Pius XI decreed that with special privileges on 16 July 1934.
  • The national image in Quezon City, Philippines, was crowned by Pope Francis via formal decree on 5 September 2019.
  • In 1941, the events became the basis of Franz Werfel's best-selling novel The Song of Bernadette. In 1943, the novel was filmed under the same title. Jennifer Jones played the title role while Linda Darnell portrayed the Virgin Mary.[45]
  • In 1961 Daniéle Ajoret portrayed Bernadette in Bernadette of Lourdes (French title: Il suffit d'aimer or Love is Enough) of Robert Darène.[46][47]
  • The 1997 book The Diving Bell and the Butterfly by Jean-Dominique Bauby features a scene in which he and his girlfriend, Josephine, go to see Our Lady of Lourdes, known in the book as the Madonna.
  • The 2009 French feature film Lourdes tells the story of wheelchair user Christine, who in order to escape her isolation, makes a life changing journey to Lourdes, the iconic site of pilgrimage in the Pyrenees.[48]
  • Lourdes, 2019 documentary[49]
  • The plot of the 2023 film The Miracle Club centers on a pilgrimage to Lourdes to visit the baths.
  • Bernadette the Musical starring Eyma as Bernadette Soubirous plays at the Athenaeum Center for Thought and Culture in Chicago, Illinois from February 12 to March 15, 2026.[50]

See also

References

  1. Back to citation occurrence 1.0 Back to citation occurrence 1.1 Back to citation occurrence 1.2 Back to citation occurrence 1.3 Back to citation occurrence 1.4 Back to citation occurrence 1.5 Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes: Recognition of the Apparitions — Official Catholic source supporting judgment, authority, judgmentDate, qualification.
  2. Back to citation occurrence 2.0 Back to citation occurrence 2.1 Back to citation occurrence 2.2 Back to citation occurrence 2.3 Back to citation occurrence 2.4 Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, 1978 norms on presumed apparitions and revelations — The earlier procedural norms under which many historical favorable judgments and permissions of public devotion were made.
  3. Back to citation "Catholic Online: Apparitions of Our Lady of Lourdes First Apparition". Archived from the original on April 12, 2005.
  4. Back to citation 2009 Catholic Almanac. Our Sunday Visitor Publishing. 2009. ISBN 978-1-59276-441-9.
  5. Back to citation "La Vierge couronnée – Lourdes". Archived from the original on 2014-09-05. Retrieved 2014-09-04.
  6. Back to citation ""Marie Reine, 22 août", Zenit, 21 Août 2013".
  7. Back to citation Burke, Raymond L; et al. (2008). Mariology: A Guide for Priests, Deacons, Seminarians, and Consecrated Persons ISBN 978-1-57918-355-4 pp. 850–868
  8. Back to citation Lauretin, R., Lourdes, Dossier des documents authentiques, Paris: 1957
  9. Back to citation Buckley, James; Bauerschmidt, Frederick Christian, and Pomplun, Trent. The Blackwell Companion to Catholicism, 2010 ISBN 1444337327 p. 317
  10. Back to citation Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes: The Apparitions — Official Catholic source supporting event, eventDates, witnesses, invocation.
  11. Back to citation occurrence 11.0 Back to citation occurrence 11.1 Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, Norms for Proceeding in the Discernment of Alleged Supernatural Phenomena — The current law governing investigation and the six possible prudential conclusions, including the exact limits of a nihil obstat.
  12. Back to citation occurrence 12.0 Back to citation occurrence 12.1 Catechism of the Catholic Church, 65–67 — Catholic doctrine on the definitive fullness of Revelation in Christ and the subordinate role of private revelations.
  13. Back to citation Second Vatican Council, Dei Verbum — The dogmatic constitution on Revelation in Christ and its transmission in Scripture and Apostolic Tradition.
  14. Back to citation Taylor, Thérèse (2003). Bernadette of Lourdes. Burns and Oates. ISBN 0-86012-337-5
  15. Back to citation Fr. Paolo O. Pirlo, SHMI (1997). "Our Lady of Lourdes". My First Book of Saints. Sons of Holy Mary Immaculate – Quality Catholic Publications. pp. 49–50. ISBN 971-91595-4-5.
  16. Back to citation occurrence 16.0 Back to citation occurrence 16.1 Laurentin 1988, p. 161.
  17. Back to citation Harris 1999, p. 4.
  18. Back to citation Harris 1999, p. 7.
  19. Back to citation occurrence 19.0 Back to citation occurrence 19.1 Back to citation occurrence 19.2 Laurentin 1988, p. 162.
  20. Back to citation Harris 1999, p. 72.
  21. Back to citation Harris 1999, p. 43.
  22. Back to citation Visentin, M.C. (2000). "María Bernarda Soubirous (Bernardita)". In Leonardi, C; Riccardi, A; Zarri, G. (eds.). Diccionario de los Santos (in Spanish). Spain: San Pablo. pp. 1586–1596. ISBN 84-285-2259-6.
  23. Back to citation Harris 1999, p. 39.
  24. Back to citation Harris 1999, p. 41.
  25. Back to citation Harris 1999, p. 60.
  26. Back to citation "Bienvenue au Sanctuaire Notre-Dame de Lourdes (France)". www.lourdes-france.org.
  27. Back to citation Schmidlin, Josef. Papstgeschichte, München 1934, 317
  28. Back to citation Bäumer Leo XIII, Marienlexikon, 97
  29. Back to citation Bäumer, Pius X Marienlexikon, 246
  30. Back to citation Hahn Baier, Bernadette Soubirous, Marienlexikon, 217
  31. Back to citation "Apparitions at Lourdes". www.catholicpilgrims.com.
  32. Back to citation occurrence 32.0 Back to citation occurrence 32.1 Harris, Ruth. Lourdes: Body and Spirit in the Secular Age, Penguin Books, 2000, p. 312.
  33. Back to citation Clarke, Richard. 2008 Lourdes, Its Inhabitants, Its Pilgrims, And Its Miracles ISBN 1-4086-8541-8 p. 38
  34. Back to citation "Lourdes 4". www3.nd.edu.
  35. Back to citation "Neurobiological effects of Lourdes water: An fMRI study" (PDF).
  36. Back to citation Schienle, Anne; Gremsl, Andreas; Wabnegger, Albert (2021). "Placebo Effects in the Context of Religious Beliefs and Practices: A Resting-State Functional Connectivity Study". Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience. 15 653359. doi:10.3389/fnbeh.2021.653359. ISSN 1662-5153. PMC 8134677. PMID 34025370.
  37. Back to citation "Il medico che analizza i miracoli di Lourdes: "Da me le persone vengono per dirmi che sono guarite"". Famiglia Cristiana.
  38. Back to citation "How do we recognise the 70th miracle of Lourdes". www.lourdes-france.org. Archived from the original on 2021-05-20. Retrieved 2021-05-20.
  39. Back to citation "Miraculous cures in Lourdes | Lourdes". July 14, 2014. Archived from the original on 2014-07-14.
  40. Back to citation Where Scientists are looking for God, The Telegraph, 16 January 2002. Retrieved 7 August 2012
  41. Back to citation Randi, James (1987). The Faith Healers. Prometheus Books. pp. 30–31. ISBN 0-87975-369-2. OCLC 19760082; "Lies are told about Lourdes healings - sceptic.info". sceptic.info. Retrieved 2025-06-16; François, Bernard; Sternberg, Esther M; Fee, Elizabeth (2014). "The Lourdes medical cures revisited". Journal of the History of Medicine and Allied Sciences. 69 (1): 135–162. doi:10.1093/jhmas/jrs041. ISSN 1468-4373. PMC 3854941. PMID 22843835; "Lourdes - The Skeptic's Dictionary - Skepdic.com". skepdic.com. Retrieved 2025-06-16.
  42. Back to citation "Wetenschappelijke apriori's tegen het paranormale". www.etiennevermeersch.be (in Dutch). Archived from the original on 2009-06-19. Retrieved 2025-06-16.
  43. Back to citation "Bienvenue au Sanctuaire Notre-Dame de Lourdes (France)". www.lourdes-france.org.
  44. Back to citation "Home". The Shrine of Saint Therese of Lisieux.
  45. Back to citation "NY Times: The Song of Bernadette". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-11-23. Retrieved 2008-12-15.
  46. Back to citation Theatrical poster.
  47. Back to citation Christophe Ruiz (8 October 2008). "Cinéma: Un festival "Lourdes au cinéma"". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
  48. Back to citation Hausner's Lourdes wins Viennale best film award. Screen daily.com, 4 November 2009.
  49. Back to citation "Lourdes (2019) - IMDb" – via m.imdb.com.
  50. Back to citation "Bernadette the Musical". Athenaeum Center. Retrieved March 22, 2026.

Bibliography

Works cited

  • Glynn, Paul (2003). Healing Fire of Christ: Reflections on Modern Miracles. Ignatius Press.
  • Harris, Ruth (1999). Lourdes: Body and Spirit in the Secular Age. Penguin Books. ISBN 0-71-399186-0.
  • Laurentin, René (1988). "Lourdes". Marienlexikon. Vol. 4. Regensburg: Eos Verlag. pp. 161–165.
  • Marnham, Patrick (1982). Lourdes, A Modern Pilgrimage. Image Books.
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