Saint Catherine Laboure of the Miraculous Medal

I. Dirvin Rev. Fr. Joseph

Description

Excellent, popular, definitive life of the saint to whom the Medal was given by Our Lady. Tells both her story and that of the Miraculous Medal apparitions. 61 pictures, including photographs of St. Catherine's incorrupt body. 250 pgs,

Sujets

• Philosophie et théologie
• Catholic Church
• Philosophy of religion
• Christianity

Informations

• Publié par: TAN Books
• Date de parution: 01 janvier 2009
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781505103298
• Langue: English

Extrait

Saint Catherine Labouré
of the Miraculous Medal
Joseph I. Dirvin, C. M .
Imprimi Potest Sílvester A. Taggart, C.M. Visitator Provinciae Orientalis
Nihil Obstat Martinus S. Rushford, Ph.D. Censor Librorum
Imprimatur Bryan Josephus McEntegart, D.D., LL.D. Episcopus Bruklyniensis Bruklyni Die ii iunii, 1958
The Nihil Obstat and Imprimatur are official declarations that a book or pamphlet is free of doctrinal or moral error. No implication is contained therein that those who have granted the Nihil Obstat and Imprimatur agree with the contents, opinions or statements expressed.
Copyright © 1958 by Farrar, Straus & Cudahy, Inc.
Interior pictures used with the permission of the Vincentian Fathers and the Daughters of Charity. All rights of reproduction strictly reserved.
Cover design by Lauren A. Rupar.
Cover image from the Church of the Sacred Heart, Lourdes, France by Br Lawrence Lew, O.P.
Library of Congress Catalog Card No.: 84-50466
ISBN: 978-0-89555-242-6
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
TAN Books Charlotte, North Carolina www.TANBooks.com 1984
To the Promoters and Members of The Central Association of the Miraculous Medal, who follow in the footsteps of Catherine Labouré by their devotion to the Miraculous Medal and their dedication to its diffusion throughout the world.
       Anyone wishing to report favors received through the Miraculous Medal may write to the
Central Association of the Miraculous Medal 475 E. Chelten Avenue Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19144
Apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary to St. Catherine Labouré during the night of July 18-19, 1830. St. Catherine threw herself at Our Lady’s knee and rested her hands on Mary’s lap. Many years later St. Catherine stated that this was the sweetest moment of her life.
Contents
Foreword by Rev. Joseph A. Skelly, C.M
Acknowledgments
I .     "Now You Will Be My Mother" II .     "Well, Then, Tell Him" III .     The Dream IV .     The Awakening V .     The Return of St. Vincent de Paul VI .     A Vision of Christ as King VII .     "This is the Blessed Virgin" VIII .     The Apparition of the Miraculous Medal IX .     The Secret of Forty-Six Years X .     The Medal and Its Wonders XI .     The Dark Night of a Soul XII .     Three Anguished Letters XIII .     The Old Men of Enghien XIV .     The Medal and Ratisbonne XV .     The "Cross of Victory" Vision XVI .     The Commune and Communists XVII .     Death and Glory
Notes to the Text
Bibliography
Foreword
THE PUBLISHERS say that this life of St. Catherine Labouré by Father Dirvin will be the definitive biography of St. Catherine. Like many other people, I suppose, I have never been quite certain of the meaning of this word as it is applied to a biography. So I asked the publishers what they mean when they say that Father Dirvin's book is definitive. Here is their explanation.
This book is the full and authoritative story on the life and works of St. Catherine, the Daughter of Charity to whom the Miraculous Medal was manifested by the Blessed Virgin in Paris in 1830. It contains much material never published before, since Father Dirvin had access to archives and places never before opened to a biographer or a historian. These were not only in Paris, but also in Rome and in the village of Fain-les-moutiers, where Catherine was born and spent her childhood. Every statement of fact has been fully authenticated; where evidence on any point is not fully conclusive, this is clearly indicated. In this book you will read everything significant that is recorded anywhere about St. Catherine and her life's work.
How Father Dirvin was able to obtain so much previously unpublished material can easily be understood by those who know of the long and close association of the Vincentian Fathers with the Miraculous Medal. For those who may not know, a brief explanation should suffice.
St. Vincent de Paul founded two Communities: 1) the Congregation of the Mission (Vincentian Fathers) and 2) the Daughters of Charity, sometimes called the Sisters of Charity. At the time Mary manifested the design of the Medal of her Immaculate Conception, Catherine Labouré was a novice in the Paris motherhouse of the Daughters of Charity. When the first Medals were cast two years later, it was only natural that they should be distributed by the spiritual sons and daughters of St. Vincent—first in France, and then throughout the world.
The first organized effort to spread devotion to Mary through her Medal was made in the United States, in 1915, by the Vincentian Fathers of Germantown, Philadelphia. Prompted by a desire to show our appreciation for a wonderful favor received through the Medal, the superiors of our Community decided to establish an association to promote devotion to Mary Immaculate. This was the beginning of The Central Association of the Miraculous Medal. For eleven years prior to his transfer to St. John's University, Brooklyn, Father Dirvin was on the office staff of the "Central Association" and was associate editor of our magazine, The Miraculous Medal .
I hope that all this talk about definitive editions and scholarly research will not mislead anyone into thinking that Father Dirvin's book is a dry compilation of facts. Far from it! Here is a narrative that brings Catherine Labouré to vivid life—as a child; as the little housekeeper in a motherless household; as a girl seeking her vocation; as the young novice chosen by Mary to give her Medal of grace to the world; as the humble Sister who insisted on remaining anonymous almost to the end. This is a book you will find very hard to lay aside until you have read the final sentence on the last page.
Rev. J OSEPH A. S KELLY , C.M., Director
The Central Association of the Miraculous Medal
Germantown, Philadelphia, Pa.
Feast of the Assumption, 1958
Acknowledgments
The author of any book is indebted to many people. It is impossible for him to thank them all publicly, but certain ones, whom he leaned upon heavily, cannot be passed over. My biggest debt of gratitude is to Father Joseph A. Skelly, C.M., who believed in the book from the first and was prodigal in giving me access to original sources. I am grateful to my confreres, who helped me by their encouragement, advice, and knowledge, especially to our Most Honored Father, William M. Slattery, Superior General of the Vincentian Fathers and the Sisters of Charity, and to Fathers William J. Casey, John J. Munday, and Joseph J. Symes. I am grateful also to my religious Sisters, especially Sister Mary Basil, Assistant General of the Sisters of Charity, and the Sisters Custodians of the Archives at Rue du Bac. Nor can I forget the kindness of M. l'Abbé Rochet, curé of the parish in which St. Catherine lived, and of Mme. Labouré-Gontard LeGrange, of Nuits St. Georges in Burgundy, a great grandniece of the saint. Special thanks are due Prof. William A. McBrien, of the Department of English of St. John's University, New York, for not counting the cost of time and labor in his careful and critical reading of the manuscript.
I
" Now You Will Be My Mother "
T HE EVENING ANGELUS was ringing over Burgundy. The mild May breeze caught the sound from a hundred belfries and blew it across the mellowing fields and ripening vineyards. Workers in the fields stopped turning the ancient earth and straightened to bless themselves and pray. In the villages, housewives paused in their preparation of the evening meal. Even the children stood silent in the cobblestoned streets where they were at play. Everyone and everything was still, while the sweet bells told once more of the meeting of Gabriel and Mary.
This moment had not changed over the centuries. The lords and ladies of the Ducal court had known it, and the serfs toiling beneath the blue Burgundian skies, and the monks of St. Bernard and the nuns of St. Jane Frances de Chantal. Only the people and the dress and the customs had changed.
Now it was the second of May in the year of Our Lord 1806, and the evening Angelus was ringing.
In one house of the village of Fain-les-moutiers no one paused for the evening prayer. It was the house of the prosperous farmer Pierre Labouré, and within its stout stone walls his wife, Madeleine Louise, was being delivered of a child. The bell of the little church across the lane had not ceased striking when the baby breathed its first breath and wailed. It was a girl, the second daughter of the household.
In the midst of all the to-do and bustle, the washings and exclamations of delight that all was well, the exhausted mother made herself heard. She had a startling request: that her newborn daughter's name be entered on the civil register at once. It was something that could wait: the official day was over; but, no, Madeleine Labouré would have it done now.
Nicolas Labouré, cousin to Pierre and mayor of the village, was summoned from his office. He brought with him his secretary, Baudrey, who carried the book and pen. The child's name was duly entered: "Catherine, daughter of Pierre Labouré and Madeleine Gontard his wife, was born this same day (May 2, 1806) at six o'clock in the evening." The mother raised herself resolutely to sign the record with her own hand. It was a marvel to her family. She had not done this for any other of her children, nor would she do it for those to come. Only for Catherine.
Thus it came about that the name of Catherine Labouré, saint of Burgundy and France, was inscribed in the written history of the world within a quarter of an hour of her birth. The very next day, the feast of the Finding of the Holy Cross, Catherine was baptized, and her name entered on the books of the Church. Her existence had now been noticed by both Church and State; both would have occasio