Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal

Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal
(Feast: 27 November)
The Virgin Mary appeared three times to a young novice of the Daughters of Charity named Catherine Labouré.
The first time was on 18 July 1830.
Here are the details of the first apparition.
Saint Catherine says: “At half past eleven at night I heard a voice calling me by name. I woke up, looked toward where the voice was coming from, drew back the curtain and saw a child dressed in white, about four or five years old, who said to me: ‘Get up quickly and come to the chapel; the Blessed Virgin is waiting for you!’ … I followed him; he gave off light all around him wherever he went.
All the lights were lit everywhere we passed, which astonished me; but my biggest surprise was on entering the chapel… The great door opened as soon as the angel touched it. But I could not see the Blessed Virgin. The child led me into the sanctuary, near the Father Director’s chair (near the altar), and I knelt there while he stood beside me. The time seemed long to me…
At last the hour came, and the angel told me: ‘Here is the Blessed Virgin, here she is!’ I heard a sound like the rustling of a silk dress coming from the direction of the gallery… She came and sat in a chair on the altar steps… I doubted it was the Blessed Virgin, but the child said to me: ‘Here is the Blessed Virgin.’ It is hard for me to describe what I felt at that moment, or what was going on inside me… It was as if I could not see the Blessed Virgin. The child said again: ‘Here is the Blessed Virgin.’
(Catherine does not take it in and stays at a distance.)
Then the child raised his voice and spoke like a man… Then I looked at the Blessed Virgin and leapt to her side, kneeling on the altar steps with my hands resting on the Blessed Virgin’s knees. There I spent the most beautiful and sweetest time of my whole life… impossible to describe…
The Blessed Virgin told me how I should behave toward my director and what to do in my troubles.”
Second apparition: On 27 November 1830 the Virgin Mary appeared to Catherine again in the chapel, this time at half past five in the evening, during the novices’ meditation, beneath the picture of Saint Joseph. Catherine saw two living scenes that merged into each other, in which the Virgin Mary appeared standing on half a globe, her feet crushing the serpent.
In the first scene the Virgin held in her hands a small golden globe topped with a cross, raising it toward heaven. Catherine heard a voice say:
“This ball represents the whole world, France, and each person in particular.”
In the second scene the Virgin’s hands appeared open, with rings of precious stones on her fingers, from which came rays of dazzling brightness. At the same time Catherine heard a voice say:
“These rays are the symbol of the graces I shed on those who ask me for them.”
Then an oval formed around the apparition, and Catherine saw an inscription in golden letters forming a half-circle:
“O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee.”
Then she heard a voice say:
“Have a medal struck after this model. All who wear it with confidence will receive great graces.”
Then the picture turned around, and Catherine saw the back of the medal: at the top, the letter M with a cross above it; at the bottom, two hearts, one surrounded by a crown of thorns and the other pierced by a sword.
Third apparition: In December 1830, during meditation, Catherine again heard the rustling, this time behind the altar. The same image of the medal appeared near the tabernacle, a little behind it:
“These rays are the symbol of the graces that the Blessed Virgin obtains for those who ask her for them… You will not see me any more.”
That was the end of the apparitions. Catherine passed on the Blessed Virgin’s requests to her confessor, Father Aladel. He received her very badly and forbade her to think about it. It was a hard blow.
A few months after the apparitions, Sister Catherine was assigned to the hospice at Enghien to care for the elderly, and she threw herself into the work. But the inner voice kept urging her: the medal must be struck. She raised the matter again with her confessor, Father Aladel.
Two years later, in February 1832, a cholera epidemic broke out in Paris and killed more than twenty thousand people! In June the Daughters of Charity began distributing two thousand medals, the first ones struck at Father Aladel’s request. Healings multiplied, as did cases of protection and conversion. It was an earth-shaking event, and the people of Paris called the medal “miraculous”.
By the autumn of 1834 there were more than 500,000 medals. In 1835 there were over a million around the world. In 1839 more than ten million had been distributed. When Sister Catherine died in 1876, there were more than a billion.
The words and images engraved on the medal express a message with three connected dimensions:
“O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee.”
Here Mary’s identity is clearly revealed to us: the Virgin Mary is free from the stain of sin from the moment of her conception. From this privilege, given her through the merits of the Passion of her Son Jesus Christ, comes her great power of intercession for those who pray to her. That is why the Virgin invites everyone to turn to her whenever they face difficulties in life.
Her feet, resting on the half-globe, crush the serpent’s head.
The half-globe is half the earth and stands for the world. For Jews and Christians the serpent embodies Satan and the forces of evil.
The Virgin Mary herself is engaged in the spiritual battle, the fight against evil, with our world as the battlefield. She invites us, too, to enter into God’s logic, which is different from the world’s logic. This is the grace of true conversion that a Christian should ask of Mary, to pass it on to the world.
Her hands are open and her fingers are adorned with rings set with precious stones, from which come rays falling on the globe and widening toward the bottom.
The brilliance of these rays, like the beauty and light of the apparition Catherine described, calls for, justifies and nourishes our trust in Mary’s faithfulness (the rings) to her Creator and to her children, in the effectiveness of her intervention (the rays of grace poured out on the earth), and in the final victory (the light), for she herself is the first disciple and the first of the redeemed.
The back of the medal bears the first letter of the Virgin’s name and images that lead us into the mystery of Mary.
The “M” with a cross above it:
the first letter of Mary’s name and the cross of Christ. These two interlaced signs show the unbreakable bond between Christ and his all-holy Mother. Mary shares in the mission of saving humanity through her Son Jesus, and through her tenderness she shares in Christ’s saving sacrifice.
At the bottom of the medal are two hearts, one crowned with thorns and the other pierced by a sword.
The heart crowned with thorns is the Heart of Jesus; it recalls the cruel stage of Christ’s Passion told in the Gospels, which came before his crucifixion and death. It symbolizes his suffering out of love for humanity.
The heart pierced by a sword is the heart of Mary his Mother; it recalls the prophecy of the elder Simeon, told in the Gospels, on the day Mary and Joseph presented Jesus in the Temple in Jerusalem. It symbolizes the love of Christ dwelling in Mary and her love for us. For our salvation, Mary accepted the sacrifice of her Son.
The closeness of the two hearts shows that Mary’s life is a life of intimacy with Jesus.
Twelve stars are engraved around the edge of the medal:
they correspond to the twelve apostles, who represent the Church. To be part of the Church means to love Christ and share in his Passion for the salvation of the world. And every baptized person is called to share in Christ’s saving mission by uniting his or her heart with the most holy Hearts of Jesus and Mary.
Litany of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, you are my Mother: smile on me.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, you are my guardian: keep me.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, you are my advocate: defend my cause.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, you are my light: guide me.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, you are my support: defend me.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, you are my hope: comfort me.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, you are my star: lead me.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, you are my Queen: rule over me.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, you are my intercessor: intercede for me.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, you are my refuge: have mercy on me.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, you are my help: come to my aid.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, be our brightness and light, and guide us on the right path.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, reign over our hearts, so that they do not turn to the love of vanities.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, guide the bishops and priests to fulfil their sacred duty.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, help us to bear trials with gracious patience.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, lead those who have strayed back to the right path.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, heal our sick and take the dying by the hand.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, strengthen the weak and keep the pure of heart.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, teach us to value modesty and to keep chastity.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, make us firm in the faith and in the salvation of our Creator.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, light up our hearts with the light of firm hope.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, revive our souls with the love of Jesus our Redeemer.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, protect us from the devil’s deceit and help us in every distress.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, comfort us in trials and sorrow, and guard us from all evil.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, help us in dangers and make us steadfast in grace.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, revive faith in hearts and give peace to the nations.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, bring harmony and concord to Christian families.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, give fathers and mothers nobility of heart and uprightness.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, protect our sons and daughters from the snares of the accursed devil.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, give the Church a clear victory over her enemies.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, pour out your abundant blessings on all of us.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, bless our families and sanctify their members.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, bless our beloved country and grant it unity and peace.
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, grant us all a peaceful life and a good end.
Prepared by Rita of the Sawt el Rab team