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As we deepen our relationship with the Eternal Word, Jesus Christ, we grow in grace and are transformed by His love and mercy.
January 7, 1844–April 16, 1879
Patron Saint of the sick; the poor; Lourdes, France
St. Bernadette Soubirous is honored as the humble visionary of Lourdes, who was chosen to receive a message of repentance and a sign of hope that continues to draw millions to prayer and healing.
Born in 1844 into a poor family in Lourdes, France, St. Bernadette lived in poverty and suffered from chronic illness. She had very little formal education. These hardships in her young life fostered humility and reliance on God.
At 14, St. Bernadette witnessed eighteen apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary at the grotto of Massabielle. A “small young lady” appeared to St. Bernadette and asked her to pray, do penance, and encourage others to conversion. In one of the apparitions, the Blessed Virgin revealed herself as the Immaculate Conception, confirming a doctrine proclaimed by the Church only four years earlier.
During the apparitions, St. Bernadette was instructed to dig in the ground, uncovering a spring whose waters soon became associated with miraculous healings. Today, Lourdes is one of the world’s most important pilgrimage sites, especially for the sick and suffering.
St. Bernadette endured intense scrutiny from civil and Church authorities, who tried time and again to weaken or discredit her testimony, but her responses were always precise and unchanging. The public was divided. Some believed her, while others doubted her testimony, ridiculed her, or called for her to be committed to an insane asylum. Throughout it all, she remained calm, obedient, and faithful.
Desiring a life of hidden service, St. Bernadette entered the Sisters of Charity of Nevers at age 22. There, she found peace through obedient service to God. Her health continued to deteriorate, and she died on April 16, 1879, at the age of 35. She was canonized in 1933.
The Virgin Mary’s message to St. Bernadette at Lourdes in 1858 centered on repentance, prayer for sinners, and the request to build a chapel. During 18 apparitions, she emphasized, “Penance! Penance! Penance! Pray to God for sinners!” The message expressed that true happiness comes from God. Mary told St. Bernadette, “I do not promise to make you happy in this world, but in the next.” During one of the apparitions, Our Lady identified herself, saying, “I am the Immaculate Conception.” This phrase had been declared a dogma by the Church only four years prior by Pope Pius IX, and the laity would not have been familiar with it at the time of the apparitions. Our Lady also told St. Bernadette to “Go, drink of the spring and wash yourself there” and asked her to “tell the priests to build a chapel here.” Our Lady also called for conversion, saying that conversion requires a willing heart. Her message emphasized turning hearts back to God and trusting in His mercy.
St. Bernadette received 18 miraculous Marian apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary at Lourdes. Guided by Our Lady, she discovered a previously unknown water source with healing properties. A woman named Catherine Latapie received the first healing during an apparition, when her paralyzed fingers were restored. While thousands of people claim healings at the Lourdes shrine, 70 cases have been rigorously investigated by the Church and confirmed as miraculous. During the canonization process, St. Bernadette’s body was exhumed and found to be incorrupt. Millions of pilgrims reported receiving spiritual healings while visiting the Shrine, including experiencing interior peace and conversion of heart. These events, along with her personal sanctity and suffering, form the basis of the miracles surrounding her life.
After the 1858 apparitions, St. Bernadette lived a life of seclusion, prayer, and severe illness. To escape public attention, she left to study with the Sisters of Charity of Nevers. Later, she entered the convent and worked as an infirmary assistant while suffering from chronic bone tuberculosis in her knee. She took the name Sister Marie-Bernard and was known for her humility, wit, and deep piety despite enduring harsh treatment by some superiors who misunderstood her constant suffering and thought she was trying to call attention to herself. She also battled asthma. St. Bernadette accepted her pain as a form of penance and “crucified life.” Throughout her life in the convent, she rarely spoke of the apparitions unless asked by superiors, maintaining a quiet, unassuming demeanor.
This eBook combines stunning photography from EWTN’s Vatican Bureau along with Bible passages and saints’ quotes that will calm your heart, give you hope, and remind you that God is with us always. Simply fill out the form below and we will send this to you!
From the Sanctuary of Lourdes in France, Fr. Joseph Mary Wolfe and Fr. John Paul Mary Zeller of the Franciscan Missionaries of the Eternal Word convey to the EWTN audience their personal impressions of the story of Lourdes, the confirmation of Our Lady’s title of the Immaculate Conception, the inspirational life and work of St. Bernadette, an account of the miracles experienced at Lourdes, and the lasting significance of Lourdes today.
During the 1858 Marian apparitions in Lourdes, 14-year-old St. Bernadette Soubirous was instructed by the Virgin Mary to dig in the ground, and a healing spring gushed forth. Since that time, pilgrims have traveled from all over the world to wash in those waters and have claimed remarkable healings that have been reported to and examined by the Lourdes Medical Bureau. In this EWTN original program, Miracle Hunter host Michael O’Neill gives a behind-the-scenes look at the inner workings of the world’s only place of miracle investigation outside of the Vatican and examines three of the most recent miracle cases authenticated as being without natural explanation.
In this series, you’ll meet men and women whose experience at the Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes has transformed their lives, turning their powerful stories of suffering and tragedy into ones of healing and faith.
Follow the creation of Bernadette of Lourdes: The Musical as it prepares for its 2026 U.S. Premiere in Chicago. Through auditions, rehearsals, and spiritual reflection, the series reveals how faith, art, and community come together to tell the story of Saint Bernadette.
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