St. Bernadette
Died: 1879
On April 16, 1879, Bernadette -- or Sister Marie-Bernard, as she was known within her order -- died in the Sainte Croix (Holy Cross) Infirmary of the Convent of Saint-Gildard. She was thirty-five.
Born into a humble family which little by little fell into extreme poverty, Bernadette had always been a frail child. Quite young, she had already suffered from digestive trouble, then after having just escaped being a victim of the cholera epidemic of 1855, she experienced painful attacks of asthma, and her ill health almost caused her to be cut off for ever from the religious life. When asked by Monsignor Forcade to take Bernadette, Louise Ferrand, the Mother Superior of the Sisters of Nevers, replied: "Monsignor, she will be a pillar of the infirmary".
At least three times during her short life-time, she received the last Sacraments. She was gradually struck by other illnesses as well as asthma: among them, tuberculosis of the lung and a tubercular tumor on her right knee. On Wednesday, April 16, 1879, her pain got much worse. Shortly after eleven she seemed to be almost suffocating and was carried to an armchair, where she sat with her feet on a footstool in front of a blazing fire. She died at about 3.15 in the afternoon.
The civil authorities permitted her body to remain on view to be venerated by the public until Saturday, April 19. Then it was "placed in a double coffin of lead and oak which was sealed in the presence of witnesses who signed a record of the events". Among the witnesses were "inspector of the peace, Devraine, and constables Saget and Moyen".
The nuns of Saint-Gildard, with the support of the bishop of Nevers, applied to the civil authorities for permission to bury Bernadette's body in a small chapel dedicated to Saint Joseph which was within the confines of the convent. The permission was granted on April 25, 1879, and on April 30, the local Prefect pronounced his approval of the choice of the site for burial. Immediately they set to work on preparing the vault. On May 30, 1879, Bernadette's coffin was finally transferred to the crypt of the chapel of Saint Joseph. A very simple ceremony was held to commemorate the event.
Additional Info:
St. Bernadette was born at Lourdes, France. Her parents were very poor and she herself was in poor health. One Thursday, February 11, 1858, when she was sent with her younger sister and a friend to gather firewood, a very beautiful Lady appeared to her above a rose bush in a grotto called Massabielle. The lovely Lady was dressed in blue and white. She smiled at Bernadette and then made the sign of the cross with a rosary of ivory and gold. Bernadette fell on her knees, took out her own rosary and began to pray the rosary. The beautiful Lady was God's Mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary. She appeared to Bernadette seventeen other times and spoke with her. She told Bernadette that she should pray sinners, do penance and have a chapel built there in her honor. Many people did not believe Bernadette when she spoke of her vision. She had to suffer much. But one day Our Lady told Bernadette to dig in the mud. As she did, a spring of water began to flow. The next day it continued to grow larger and larger. Many miracles happened when people began to use this water. When Bernadette was older, she became a nun. She was always very humble. More than anything else, she desired not to be praised. Once a nun asked her if she had temptations of pride because she was favored by the Blessed Mother. "How can I?" she answered quickly. "The Blessed Virgin chose me only because I was the most ignorant." What humility! Her feast day is April 16th.
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Dearest Saint Bernadette....thank you for being an inspiration for my own life. Please keep my family in your prayers. May we be like you in accepting the Lord's will for us, with a humble, loving and grateful heart. Thank you, sweetest of Saints.
Dear Saint,
Kindly pray to our Beloved Mother to protect Pope Francis and strengthen him in spreading the Faith fearlessly. May our Mother fill all the priests with the Holy Spirit that they may bear witness to the Truth and teach the faithful the authentic faith. Let not the so called social evils that are ruling the day mislead the Priests and let them not give in to their tempting words and empty promises. The name of our Lord be on everyone's lips and rule everyone's heart, body, mind and Soul. Amen.
Dear St. Bernadette, you found God His Mother our noble Queen in your sickness and frailty. Pray for us not to abandon His call despite our health condition. That we may always find rest and fulfillment doing His Holy will. Amen.
Saint Bernadette, you understand what it is like to suffer from severe asthma. Please heal me of my asthma, or at least reduce the severity. Thank you for listening.
St. Bernadette, please pray for us sinners, to become more and more humble like you.
Saint Bernadette, please pray for me and take away this pain i have in my right shoulder. Praise be to Jesus...amen.
St. Bernadette i pray in great faith 2 you and the virgin Mary i belive in you 2 so much
Please pray for me and my family friends please help me in my work
God Bless us all
Amen
St. Bernadette, i may not know how to pray well but i humbled myself to Mercy of God in Christ Jesus reveal to us by the holly spirit, to receive favor from bounties of God's mercy together with your prayers and that of our lady of lourdes , for healing of my wife, to give wisdom to my children, to break the yoke of poverty from my family, to give good health to my family and the sick in hospital and open my mind to be job creative within God's providence and be appreciative in that the lord permits in my life. Thanx for hearing my plea in Jesus name. Amen.
Dear ST. Bernadette, I love you! Please pray that my children and their families to come back to their Catholic Faith! I pray everyday for them,also for my daughter, they are struggling financially and needs prayers! I recently had major back surgery and need your prayers to heal me. In Jesus Name I pray Amen!
I most confess that this site is faith enriching. Dear st. Bernadette please strengthen my commitment towards praying Rosary, through your intercession.
St. Bernadette please pray for my wife to our Blessed Mother to ask her Beloved Son Jesus that she is healed of her persistent skin disease that she has endured these last few years. I am confident that she would listen to your prayers and ask her Son for help in this Holy Week we are in. Your treasured help is humbly requested.
St,Bernadette, Only as a civil citizen please ensure the very most off only highest off civilized human justice, at the very off best. Please with most do off only respect, please do ensure, that off my very higher off very conscious, the most dignified off reasurrance, at the most. With highest off most valued off dignified only off respect, please do only ensure most highest off healing, at the very most off highest
St.Bernadette can you please pray for my family we need help.
from; Bernadette
ST BERNABETTE please pray pray for to get a responsible partener who is catholic and also protection of my job and financial breakthrough and wisdom to understand
This is an insulting article. The first couple of paragraphs, in fact, would lead one to believe that her chief contribution was suffering and dying, and that the miraculous visions of the Blessed Mother at Lourdes were, at best, an afterthought. Then, later in the article, the visions at the grotto are spoken of as alleged, with quotation marks around them, as if we should be skeptical. Puh-lease! This site claims to be Catholic??? These apparitions are approved by the Church. If you're looking for the real story of St. Bernadette -- go where your understanding will not be tainted. Embartassing!
St. Bernadette, please heal my son Luke's heart defect. Let his ballooning be succesful on February 28th, at Children's Hospital of Michigan. I know you can bring about miraculous events, so I ask you to intercede for my son, and either heal him, or let him need only a ballooning of his aortic valve, that will relieve the pressure in his ventricle, and let there be no leakage. I believe in your powers. Please intercede on my son's behalf. I thank you in advance for hearing my plea.
Highest off valued reasoning, with most intregrity, and most sincerest off valued invite.
Please do allow my very off higher conscious, the very right to strive, at only the highest off my higher off, very conscious very potential, at all levels.
Please do allow my very off conscious, the very right to most greatest level off most, at highest endeavors.
My very higher off so conscious has been deeply declined off unjust. Please do allow for healing, dearest
Highest off valued reasoning, and most sincerest off valued invite, do allow my very off higher conscious, the very right to strive, at only the highest off my higher off, very conscious very potential, at all levels.
Please do allow my very off conscious, the very right to most greatest level off most, at highest endeavors.
My very higher off so conscious has been deeply declined off unjust. Please do allow for deep felt levels off healing, dearest
Encourage and allow, the greater and higher meaning, of why such a level off unjustice with great amount off ignorance, to they off the higher conscious.
Why the severity off such Unjustice, to the higher off conscious, at this level.
Allow my very conscious the highest privilege, at the highest level, off why such ignorance, at this level.
The very off conscious is striving for greater level off endeavor, only to be violated at to great at such a level.
To great for the conscious to accept. Please do allow for healing, only with dearest
Saint Bernadette, your story is one of my favorites. I pray and I thank you for your bravery. God bless you always.