MARIA BERNARDA SOUBIROUS, SANTA

Living in the shadow of a mill, in silence and modesty, with no education beyond the Rosary, she did not stand out from her peers except for a lively sense of piety. At noon on 11 February 1858 she had her first vision of the Immaculate Virgin; the visions continued until 16 July and numbered eighteen in all. The Virgin’s message was that a church should be built on that spot, where she had placed her feet and caused roses to bloom in the dead of winter. There souls and bodies would find refreshment and healing. Thus, after overcoming contradictions and doubts regarding the visions, the sanctuary arose, now renowned for its unceasing pilgrimages, conversions, and miracles. Having fulfilled her mission, Bernadette entered the Congregation of the Sisters of Charity and Christian Instruction at Nevers on 29 July 1866, living there in humility and obscurity, always most faithful to her duty and ever tormented by illness. She was beatified on 12 June 1925 and canonized on 8 December 1933. Her feast is celebrated on 18 February.