Bernadette is a French female name from Bernard which is Ber in German and means Bear 🐻, Brave or Strong
St Marie Bernadette Soubirous was born at Lourdes in France in 1844. She was born with Asthma, a terrible sickness that makes breathing extremely difficult. Her parents were very poor and had very little to live on.
One day in 1858, while Bernadette was gathering firewood, a beautiful Lady stood in a cave before her. She was dressed in blue and white and there were roses at her feet. She smiled at Bernadette and asked her to pray the rosary with her.
Bernadette saw the Lady eighteen times in total. Once, the Lady said, “I do not promise to make you happy in this world but in heaven”.
Huge crowds of people followed Bernadette to the grotto to say the rosary with her even though some were skeptical about the whole apparation because they could not see the Lady. The Lady then asked Bernadette to scrape the earth. The miraculous spring of Lourdes started to flow and has remained in the same spot till this day. This is the proof to diffuse all skeptics and bring them back to God. Many pilgrims have been cured there including St Rita of Cascia.
When Bernadette asked the Lady her name, the Lady looked up to heaven and said “I am the Immaculate Conception”. Her message was “Pray for sinners”. She asked that a chapel be built near the grotto. Today, this spot is a great shrine of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Later, Bernadette became a nun. Her life was one of joyful suffering. She died at the age of thirty-six in 1879 of tuberculosis. Today, she lies in the chapel of Lourdes in a glass coffin, incorrupt even though she suffered a lot from body sicknesses when she was alive. She had sores all over her body at one time that could not be cured. But today, her body lies fresh as a newborn. May God be glorified.
May we as children of God understand that sometimes God Himself calls us with a special assignment that might be full of suffering. It doesn’t mean God has forsaken us but rather He loves us so much that He wants to glorify Himself through us. May the life of this young Saint teach us to accept our lives as God wills.
St Bernadette, pray for us 🙏🏾. Amen Happy feast day to all Bernadette and Bernard.
