The Three Miracles of Lourdes That Destroyed Liberalism
The Grotto of Lourdes is the site of eighteen apparitions of Our Lady to St. Bernadette in 1858. The small cave of Massabielle, located in a remote French village, has become one of the most important Catholic pilgrimage sites in the world. The faithful come from all over the world to pray before the statue of the Virgin Mary. Inspired by this place, the faithful create their own grottos in her honour.
A miraculous source in liberal France
The Lourdes Grotto is known primarily for the numerous healings that occurred at the miraculous spring flowing through Massabielle. Here, Our Lady called for penance and reaffirmed her title of Immaculate Conception.
These miracles occurred at a time when Enlightenment and liberal ideas were permeating Europe. Among them, scientism was particularly influential—the belief that knowledge could be acquired solely through scientific discovery, with faith being secondary. Proponents of such ideas ridiculed religion and treated believers as detached from reality.
Our Lady did not leave these attacks unanswered. The miracles performed through her intercession discredited religious sceptics. Their research, experiments, and philosophies were unable to explain the extraordinary events at Massabielle. Below are three miracles that proved that scientism cannot explain divine intervention—one of them even involved the liberal Emperor of France, Napoleon III.
1. Louis-Justin Bouhort
In January 1862, Louis-Justin Bouhort arrived in Lourdes, a boy under two years old whom doctors considered hopeless. A birth defect and a fragile physical condition meant his chances of survival were minimal.
His mother, a devout Catholic, refused to give up. When doctors warned the child might live only a few hours, she took him to Massabielle—even though public visits were forbidden at the time. Onlookers screamed, trying to stop her from “killing the child” by plunging him into icy water. She ignored them and plunged the boy into the icy water for fifteen minutes. When he was removed from the water, the child’s body was stiff and
blue. However, his mother took him home, convinced that Our Lady had healed her child.
Upon arrival home, a faint heartbeat could still be felt. Doctors feared that the mother’s act of faith might have killed the child, but she remained steadfast in her beliefs. The next day, the boy awoke completely healthy. His recovery was rapid and complete. Contrary to doctors’ earlier diagnoses, Justin was able to walk, something that had been considered impossible since birth. The doctors concluded that the cause of the cure was “God’s omnipotence” and not medical treatment.
2. Francis Pascal
The recovery of four-year-old Francis Pascal was another well-documented and remarkable case. In 1937, the boy contracted a severe form of meningitis. The illness caused him to develop a fever of 40°C, which led to blindness and paralysis.
Despite the care of numerous doctors, the boy’s condition did not improve. One of them, Dr Darde, provided him with ongoing care, but when symptoms persisted for another year, he deemed the case hopeless and suspended further treatment. Desperate, the parents decided to take the child to Lourdes and pray that Our Lady would do what medicine could not.
At the miraculous spring, the mother immersed her helpless child in the water, praying fervently to the Virgin Mary. The boy screamed, raising concerns that the cold water might have caused convulsions. The child experienced shock, but there was no immediate recovery. The mother repeated the attempt the next day, but there was still no improvement.
Thinking her efforts were in vain, she took the boy back to the hospital. However, her prayers did not go unanswered. Within minutes, Francis began to speak, recognise his surroundings, and point to objects—both his blindness and paralysis were gone. The joyful mother rushed to the hospital, where doctors confirmed the child’s complete recovery. Dr Darde was surprised to see that the child, who had been near death, was not only alive but also walking. In a letter to the Medical Office in Lourdes, he wrote that “from a medical point of view, such a result cannot be explained.” Pascal’s family trusted Our Lady, whose power knows no medical limits.
3. Prince Imperial Louis Napoleon
Perhaps the most famous person to benefit from the miraculous waters of Lourdes was a member of the Imperial family of France—Louis Napoleon. Napoleon Bonaparte promoted liberalism wherever he ruled, and his descendants continued this legacy. The French government under Napoleon III (1852–1870) became known as the “liberal empire.”
Shortly after the apparitions, two-year-old Prince Louis-Napoleon contracted tuberculosis, a disease often fatal in those days. While his father sought the best doctors, his mother turned to Lourdes. She sent Louis-Napoleon’s governess, Madame Bruat, to fetch water from the miraculous spring of Massabielle.
The governess was determined to fulfil her mission. She ignored the signs and barriers and knelt in prayer before the grotto, imploring Our Lady to help the child recover. While praying, a guard approached her and informed her that she would be brought before a criminal court for this flagrant violation of the law. When asked her name, she replied, “wife of Admiral Bruat and governess of His Highness, the Prince Imperial.” Upon hearing this, the guard attempted to withdraw the charges, but the faithful governess insisted on standing trial alongside the other victims of the unjust decree. When she appeared before the tribunal, she paid the fines for all those arrested for praying at Massabielle.
After this incident, the governess returned and presented the Empress with water from Lourdes, which saved the Prince Imperial from tuberculosis. This act of God compelled Napoleon III to order the reopening of Massabielle to the faithful in France. Although this miracle did not convert the emperor, it put an end to the liberal repression of the grotto of Our Lady.
God’s answer to liberalism
The apparitions at Lourdes were Heaven’s response to the errors of the time. When liberalism attempted to subordinate the Catholic Church to science and reason, Our Lady of Lourdes performed “unreasonable” miracles that contradicted science and strengthened many in their faith. The anti-Catholic ideas that grew out of the Enlightenment and liberalism are bearing fruit today.
Pseudoscience is used to condone terrible sins such as abortion, same-sex “marriage,” transgenderism, and euthanasia. These errors constitute a direct attack on the Church established by God. Our Lady responded to these attacks with numerous miraculous interventions at Lourdes, which contradicted the spirit and false ideas of the time.
The spirit of St. Bernadette
Saint Bernadette showed us that even a small effort to trust God can yield great results. When she dug into the earth to discover the spring at Lourdes, she ignored the mockery of the crowd and placed her complete trust in the words of Our Lady. The spring she discovered healed thousands of people and became a place where God’s power is revealed to this day.
Today, Catholics must demonstrate a similar faith and trust in God as they confront liberal doctrines that undermine the Church’s authority. Even the smallest actions, in full trust in Our Lady, can contribute to the triumph of truth and healing in society.
Laatst bijgewerkt: 2 March 2026 14:50