Marie Bernarde Soubirous was born on January the 7th, 1844 to Francoise
and Louise Soubirous. Her homeland was an area of the Pyrenees
Mountains that is half French and half Spanish, a cultural mix that was
reflected in the young Bernadette herself. Her peasant father, a
miller, handicapped by an eye injury, had been accused of stealing bread
from a local baker, resulting in his being jailed for eight days. The
area in France, having suffered from a drought, the loss of the wheat
harvest, and a cholera epidemic which claimed many lives, caused Bernadette
to become infected and weakened. When Bernadette was 13, the extreme poverty
left the family dependent upon relatives for their accommodation,
consisting of one small room. Shunned by the locales
because of her poverty and weakness, Bernadette's schooling suffered,
and so she was unable to read or write. By age 14, she was denied
receiving her first Holy Communion. In November of 1857, she was sent
away to a little village to work on a farm, but her eagerness for her
first Communion brought her back to her village in January 1858, the
month of her 14th birthday, when her life and the lives of all around
her would change forever.
A day came when the young girl went walking with her
sister and a friend near Massabielle. The weakened Bernadette, could
not keep up with the others. Having removed her socks and shoes to
cross a stream and follow, she heard a gust of wind and looking up, she
saw a lady dressed in white, with a blue belt and a yellow rose on each
foot. It was to be the first of eighteen apparitions that she witnessed
that year, the final one on the 16th of July. On February 19th, upon
her return to the holy grotto, Bernadette lit a candle, inspiring millions in the
decades to follow to repeat the observance of the Holy Visitor.
On Sunday, February 21st, crowds began to follow Bernadette, an event
that drew the attention of an uncomfortable Police Commissioner,
Jacomet. It was on her eighth visit on Wednesday, February 24th, that
she received her first message. The Lady proclaimed "Penance! Pray to
God for sinners! Kiss the ground as an act of penance for sinners!" The
next day, Bernadette was instructed by the Lady to drink from the
spring, but the Apparition was merely pointing to a muddy spot.
Obediently, the young girl obliged, and soon the crowd of onlookers were
taken aback by the girl's rooting amongst the mud which she smeared
around her mouth and face. To the people, she responded, "It is for
sinners." Shortly after, the small spring began to flow, after which, a
friend of Bernadette's plunged her dislocated arm into the spring. It
was to be the first of the miraculous healings in those early days.
On March the 2nd, the Lady instructed Bernadette to take a message to
the Parish Priest. She wanted him to build a chapel at the grotto. The
Priest did not believe Bernadette, and he demanded to know the name of
the Lady. Later, in response, the Lady informed Bernadette to reply
that she was the "Immaculate Conception." The phrase, unknown to the
ignorant girl, had been assigned to the Blessed Virgin just four
years earlier. Unaware of what the name was or what it meant, Bernadette
informed the Parish Priest what the Lady had told her to say, leaving
the holy man greatly puzzled. Immediately, the Bishop of
Tarbes, began a Church enquiry. Four years later, Bernadette's
Sightings were proclaimed authentic. Recognizing that there was a direct
link between the cures and the Apparitions, the Bishop wrote, "The
finger of God is here."
In 1866, Bernadette joined the Congregation of the Sisters of Charity of
Nevers, France, receiving the name Sister Marie-Bernard. She remained
in weakened health throughout her years, until her physical appearance
became quite pitiable. Once a visitor came to see her so that she
might know the remarkable and humble girl. As she passed by, a
companion pointed her out and remarked scornfully, "Bernadette. It's just
her." On April 16th, 1879, when she was 55 years of age, Bernadette
died. Her body, lightly coated with wax, has remained incorrupt in the
chapel dedicated to her at the Sisters of Charity in Nevers, France. In
1925, on June 2nd, Pope Pius XI declared that Bernadette was Blessed,
and on December 8th, 1933, she was canonized.
The day of St. Bernadette Soubirous is April the 16th, the day she
ascended into heaven.
