The saint of Lourdes, penance and poverty ... Our Lady's child-visionary is also to many, the saint of family. Born on January the 7th in 1844 this was an era of prosperity for her family. Her parents and younger siblings lived in an environment of deep love and devotion for each other. However, hard times soon fell on agricultural France, and worse yet, a string of seemingly endless bad luck fell on the Soubirous family. Put to the test time and again, Bernadette and her family discovered the meaning of unconditional commitment.

In desperation, illness, and poverty, the oldest of the Soubirous children began having mysterious visions at the age of fourteen. The combination of sophisticated revelations and Bernadette's simplicity were a certain confirmation of the reality of these apparitions. The region was soon in uproar over the events. The apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary spanned only six months, but no relief came to the Soubirous family. The events at Lourdes only magnified the trials of Bernadette and her family, leading to persecution by many non believers and religious authorities, alike.

Consolation eventually came as the Roman Catholic Church, having been previously cruel to the child Bernadette, constantly testing her, interviewing her and doubting her, confirmed the apparitions and construction began on the sanctuary at the Grotto of Massabielle before Bernadette even left for Nevers. As for Bernadette, she experienced utter destitution and divine light simultaneously and with dignity- how many could honestly say they could do the same?

The Boly Mill pictured right was Bernadette's first home. Less than a year after Bernadette was born, her mother Louise suffered a burn injury while pregnant with her second child. Bernadette was sent to a nurse at Bartrès and returned eleven months later after the younger child had died. There were eventually to be nine children born to Louise and François Soubirous, of which only four survived childhood. Three years later, François was blinded in the left eye in a milling accident at the Boly Mill, which was also the family's home. Crops were poor and famine struck France. In 1854, with work sparse, the Soubirous were turned out from the Boly Mill. They wandered from one boarding house to another, turned out each time for failing to meet their bills. Bernadette was 11 years old when she was caring for her three younger siblings as her parents were forced to find work each day. When a cholera epidemic swept through town, Bernadette was stricken and she was to suffer with severe asthma for the rest of her short life. To help her family survive, she worked for a time as a waitress in her aunt's inn.

One of the ECC+C's communities is named after St Bernadette, this young girl who gazed into the eyes of the Mother of God. Many churches and/or parishes are named after a particular saint. I wonder how many people take for granted the saint's earthly life every time they attend services in the building named after them? 

At the ninth apparition, Mary asked Bernadette to scrape the ground, saying to her "Go to the spring, drink of it and wash yourself there." There was only a little muddy water to begin with, enough for Bernadette to drink. The spring signifies the cleansing of the human heart, wounded by wrong doing yet healed through prayer. Bernadette was asked by the authorities what 'the lady' said to her. She replied, "Now and again she would say, 'penance, penance, penance, pray for sinners as praying leads us to the Spirit of God'.