St Bernadette - France - 19th Century

My favourite shrine is Lourdes. It fills my mind with soothing images. The presence and sound of water. The Lady asked Bernadette to scratch the earth, and healing water flowed.

It is a place of wheelchairs and stretchers , where the sick are hosted , like nowhere else on earth. They take first place, in all processions and celebrations. People from all over the world come together here. There is peace, hospitality, joviality in the air, with everyday bargaining.

When Bernadette was hassled by the authorities about the truth of her visions, she said

’’The Lady did not ask me to make anyone believe, she only asked me to tell my story ‘’.