This Sunday’s gospel gives us yet another account of two different people approaching Jesus seeking healing: Jairus who comes to plead that Jesus come down and heal his daughter who is at the point of death. The second, a woman afflicted with severe hemorrhages, touches his cloak and Jesus heals her of her affliction. Later Jesus goes with Jairus to his home and brins the little girl back to life, at the ridicule of some, but with heartfelt thanksgiving from her family.
When we read through the four accounts of the gospel, we are frequently met with people who need the healing touch and word from our Lord Jesus Christ. But then, of course, he came to heal us. When Jesus healed those, who received his miraculous touch, they offered praise and thanksgiving. They were healed. Praise God!
Miracles still occur in our world today. They are required in order for a person to advance in the journey to canonization. These miracles go through a very lengthy and rigorous process to authenticate that they are truly miracles. The same thing is true when someone who has received healing as a result of prayer and a miraculous touch at Lourdes in France. How often do such miracles occur there. Once again there is a very long and rigorous process in order to establish that the healing is permanent and genuine.
The last cure at Lourdes that has been authenticated by medical science and by the Church occurred on July 8, 2009 and was pronounced to be a true and permanent healing only in 2018. On February 11th in that year the International Medical Committee of Lourdes issued its finding that Sister Bernadette Morais, a Franciscan nun had been miraculously cured of a very debilitating affliction of neurological deficiencies that affected her lower spinal column, deformed her left foot making it necessary for her to wear a leg brace and a tight fitting corset to help alleviate her pain. She also had to carry with her morphine so she could take this medicine due to sudden and severe pain. All of this was debilitating over the years. She suffered with all of this for almost forty years.
Sister Bernadette went on a pilgrimage of Lourdes in 2008 and it was while at prayer with a group of other pilgrims that her cure began. She returned home to her convent in Bresles, Picardy, still in pain physically. But on July 11th while at prayer with other sisters on that Friday afternoon, she began to experience a great calm of spirit. When she returned to her room after that prayer hour, she felt she was being told to take off her leg brace and spinal corset. She did these and immediately her pain left her. She could stand and walk without the assistance of her brace. She no longer needed to take her morphine medicine. She was cured. But then the long process of dealing with all that was required by the medical science people and the church authorities began. It wasn’t until 2018 that both medicine and church announced that her cure was miraculous.
Yes, miracles do still take place. It’s just that the human factor sometimes gets in the way and slows things down. But praise God that his presence still cures where human medicine still must bow to the divine. Thanks be to God!
Sister Bernadette has written a little book entitled “My Life is a Miracle” published by Magnificat. She tells the story of her journey and gives her testimony of God’s work in her.
It’s summer now, rejoice!
Fr. Walt
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