The Immaculate Conception-The Lovliest Lady

"Hail, full of grace." St. Luke, 1:28.

"Oh, my Lady, be so kind as to tell me who you are and what your name is?"

Who is the Lady and who is talking? We see a frail, country girl about fourteen years old, poorly dressed, kneeling along a hiIIside of France. In the hollow of a rock stands a young and beautiful woman, the most lovely woman you ever saw.

Fifteen times this beautiful Lady has appeared to this poor little girl. Four times already the girl has asked the pretty Lady's name. At last the lovely Lady folds her hands, looks up to heaven, and answers:

"I am the Immaculate Conception."

She disappears. The little girl - can any of you guess who the little girl was? Yes, it was St. Bernadette. And who was the pretty lady? Cor­rect again - it was our Blessed Mother. Bernadette hurries home, hurries to the priest's house, all the way repeating to herself, 'Immaculate Con­ception! Immaculate Conception!' lest she forget the pretty Lady's name.

When the Church made sure - it took four years to do so - that it really was the Blessed Virgin who appeared to Bernadette, a beauti{ul grotto was built on the spot, because the Blessed Virgin wanted it built. That grotto is known all over the world as the Grotto of Lourdes. Every year thousands of people, especially sick people, come from every land to ask our Blessed Mother to cure them. And hundreds she cures.

Why did our Blessed Mother say:

"I am the Immaculate Conception"?

Why is Mary called that? What does it mean? The Immaculate Conception means that our Blessed Mother from the very first second that she began to exist was kept free from all stain of all sin.

When a baby is born it has original sin on its soul, hasn't it? Well, before Mary was even born, she was free from original sin. She never had it on her soul for one second. She never had any sin on her soul. Jesus did not want His mother to be for one second in the power of Satan. Jesus kept her free from all sin. Jesus could do that; Jesus wanted to do that; He did it. He kept His sweet mother from all sin, even from original sin.

This unusual beauty that Mary had we honor today, the feast of the Immaculate Conception. Just four years before our Blessed Mother appeared to St. Bernadette and told her that she wanted to be called the Immaculate Conception, Pope Pius IX, December 8, 1854, had taught the world that the Blessed Virgin Mary in the first instant of her conception, by a singular privilege and grace granted by God, in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the human race, was preserved free from all stain of original sin.

To prove that the Pope was right in teaching this, Mary appeared to a simple farm girl. To prove further that the Pope was right, the Blessed Virgin has obtained from God countless cures for the sick and crippled who come to the spot where Mary appeared to Bernadette.

Many of you have seen the inspiring moving picture, "The Song of Bern­adette." Some of you may have read the book by that name. The book and the movie tell us all about this wonderful story. All this was over one hundred years ago. What does that have to do with us? It has a lot to do with us. Here are a few reasons:

1. Mary is the mother of all of us. Jesus gave her to us as a mother, as one who would watch over us and protect us, like a mother.

2. About one hundred and fifty years ago the bishops of the United States got together and chose Mary under the name of the Immaculate Conception as the special protector or patroness of our beloved country.

3. Thousands of bodies have been cured and healed through Mary at Lourdes, the place where she appeared. And these are real miracles, don't forget; hundreds of doctors have said that they are real miracles.

Because our Blessed Mother means so much to us:

1. We want to tell her today that she is our mother and our Immaculate Queen.

2. We want to ask Mary today to protect the United States and everybody in it. We want her to make our country a good nation, where everybody will love her and her divine Son.

3. We will ask Mary today, even though we can't go all the way to Lourdes, we will ask her to cure not only our bodies of sickness, but to cure our souls of the sickness of sin, to keep our souls free from sin.

On this glorious feast Mary shows herself to each one of us as she showed herself to Bernadette. She tells everyone of us that she wants to be called, she wants to be honored as - the Immaculate Con­ception. Amen.
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Adapted from Talks for Children
by Fr. Arthur Tonne, OFM (© 1948)