OUR LADY OF  LOURDES

 

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On February  11th the Church celebrates the feast of Our Lady Of Lourdes.

 

Mother Angelica in her February newsletter writes “No Pain,No gain….If  we seriously  desire growth in holiness, we must be willing to suffer…..Saint Bernadette is a wonderful  example of someone who experienced both the pain and gain . She lived in poverty….[and]  along with this extreme poverty, Saint Bernadette also suffered her entire life from intense physical and spiritual  suffering….[she] accepted the so- called injustices of life,as the pathway to holiness; she accepted physical pain uniting it to the pain of Jesus on the Cross; she accepted spiritual favors with the same serenity with which she accepted spiritual darkness; she accepted the Will of God as her only nourishment and her only consolation….

 

For souls that truly embrace suffering (and we are all going to suffer, whether we accept it or not!), these three virtues become their hallmarks: faithfulness, humility, and valor.Faithful: because a suffering soul learns how to endure, keeping her eyes fixed firmly on the Goal: Humble: because a suffering soul knows her utter dependence upon the Providential care of the Eternal Father, the merciful compassion of the  Son, and the strength and consolation of the Holy Spirit. Valiant: because the suffering  soul views her cross as an opportunity to rise above the apparent evil of her condition, thus truly grasping the reality of redemptive suffering….

Let us approach our Sweet Mother with the childlike confidence of Saint  Bernadette---making her prayer to Our Lady ofSorrows our own: “O Mary, my tender Mother, behold your child who can go no further. Have pity on me. You, who have seen and felt the utter desolation of your Divine Son, assist me in this hour of mine. Let me stay with you at the Foot of the Cross, if so be the pleasure of your Divine Son! Let me begin here below---my soul united to yours---to glorify Our Lord by this perpetual homage of perfect submission.”

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The Catechism  states (1508)…”Thus St. Paul must learn from the Lord that ‘my grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness,’ and that the sufferings to be endured can mean that ‘ in my flesh, I complete what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his Body,that is, the Church.’ “ (Col. 1:24)

 

 

EWTN  is featuring the following programs:

 

LOURDES ---explores the theology of Lourdes and Our Lady’s message to St.Bernadette. Learn how God used a young peasant girl and the opposition she faced during her lifetime. See what her obedience has wrought for millions of pilgrims to Lourdes for the past 150 years. Airs February 9 at 8PM, February  13 at 1 PM, February 14 at 3AM & 10PM, (60 min.)

 

BERNADETTE: PRINCESS OF LOURDES---Watch  Bernadette’s transformation from a  poor peasant girl to the Princess of Lourdes when the beautiful Queen of Heaven favors her with revelations. This small town in mid-nineteenth century France, and what  happened there, comes alive for  young viewers  in this animated story. Airs February 10 at 7PM,February 11 at 4PM,February 14 at 1PM, February 21 at 4PM. ( 30 min.)

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