our lady and the agnostic - lourdes center

A PUBLICATION OF THE LOURDES CENTER • THE MARIST FATHERS & BROTHERS

May-June 2017 Vol. 8 No. 4

OUR LADY AND THE AGNOSTIC

There are thousands of “inexplic-able healings” reported everyyear at the Marian shrine in

Lourdes, France, one of the most visit-ed shrines in the world. However, onlya minute number of these “healings”are deemed truly “miraculous” by theChurch; the criteria for such a designa-tion are extremely rigorous.

Many people reject the whole phe-nomenon, unaware of the rigor of theChurch’s studies and uninformed abouthow the Church validates or rejects thethousands of “apparent miracles” pre-sented for examination. For many peo-ple, the concept of “miracle” is just thetalk of charlatans, lacking any scientificbasis.

This attitude of certain “intellectu-als” contrasts the respectful posture ofcertain prestigious professionals suchas the French doctor Luc Montagnier, arecipient of the Nobel Prize inMedicine (2008), who, among his vari-ous achievements, is credited with hav-ing discovered HIV.

A former director of the PasteurInstitute, this eminent scientist offeredhis opinion on Lourdes miracles in abook, Le Nobel et le Moine (The Nobel[Laureate] and the Monk), in which hedialogues with the Cistercian MichelNiassaut. When the conversation turnsto the inexplicable healings in Lourdesand Brother Michel asks the doctor his

opinion as a non-believer, Montagnierresponds: “When a phenomenon isinexplicable, if it really exists, thenthere is no reason to deny it.”

If the phenomenon exists, what’sthe point indenying it? It should bestudied, not denied. Montaigneraffirms that “in the miracles ofLourdes, there is something inexplica-ble,” and he rejects the position heldby some scientists, who “commit theerror of rejecting what they don’t

understand. I don’t like this attitude. Ifrequently quote the astrophysicist CarlSagan: “The absence of evidence is notevidence of absence.”

Montagnier continues: “As far as themiracles of Lourdes that I’ve studied, Ibelieve it really is something inexplica-ble.” “I don’t have an explanation forthese miracles,” he adds, “and I recog-nize that there are healings that are notincluded within the current limits ofscience.”

Inside The Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary within the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes, France.

2 M A R I S T F A T H E R S & B R O T H E R S O F T H E U N I T E D S T A T E S ECHOES FROM LOURDES

THE DIRECTOR’S CORNER

Rev. andRew albeRt, S.M.

Rev. GeoRGe Szal, S.M.

Dear Friends of the Lourdes Center,I hope you all had a great Easter!

And now we can enjoy the beautifuldays of spring.

Some thanks are in order. First, Iwant to thank all of our readers whopray for our ministry and who supportour ministry with generous donations.We could not continue the ministrywithout your generous support.

Thanks also to many of you whosend us new names, new readers. Wordof mouth is the best advertising. Somany Catholics, so many of yourfriends may have never heard of whathappened in 1858 in a small town inFrance. The Blessed Mother appeared18 times to St. Bernadette, a young illit-erate French girl. Everyone needs tohear of this marvelous event. YOUCAN HELP. All you have to do is sendus the names and addresses of peoplewho might be interested. Thanks againto those readers who help us in thisway.

My thanks to Fr. Lacasse who haswritten interesting and insightful arti-cles in the Lourdes Echoes for manyyears. Father, who is now in a nursinghome, feels he cannot do this anylonger. I thank him and know you willkeep him in your prayers.

And now for a special announce-

ment. As of July 1st Fr. George Szal,s.m. will take over as the new directorof the Lourdes Center and the newsuperior of our Marist Community. Ithas been a joy and privilege for me tohave been director for the past six anda half years. In talks with the provin-cial (my boss) I explained that it is timefor someone else to take charge.

Fr. Szal is a Marist priest andbelieves very much in the ministry, andwas chaplain twice in recent years withthe yearly pilgrimage to Lourdes.

Fr. George was born and raised inDetroit, Michigan, the second of sixchildren. In his own words he says,“My parents were devout Catholicsand sent me to Catholic Schools. Bothof my parents were devoted to theBlessed Mother and I think it was fromthem and the Franciscan Sisters at OurLady Queen of Heaven School inDetroit that I developed a love for anddependence upon the Blessed VirginMary in all of my necessities . In fact itwas my mom who taught me the rosarybefore I was able to receive commun-ion.”

Fr. George was ordained in 1975.His first assignment was as chaplain atMassachusetts General Hospital,Boston, one of the largest and mostprestigious hospitals in the state.

Hence, his apostolate to the sick washis first.

He also served in a number ofMarist parishes, and was a chaplain atfour prisons. He was pastor atImmaculate Conception Parish inRevere, MA, and since 1989 has beeninvolved in the NEO-CatechumenalWay.

As he says, “I am extremely happyto be called at this point in my life toserve as the Director of the LourdesCenter.”

I personally am very happy that ourprovincial Fr. Paul Frechette hasappointed Fr. George Szal as the newdirector.

As for me, I will stay here at the cen-ter and continue to support this won-derful ministry that was entrusted to usby Cardinal Cushing over sixty yearsago.

Have a wonderful Easter season andGod bless you all.

Fr. Albert

3M A R I S T F A T H E R S & B R O T H E R S O F T H E U N I T E D S T A T E SECHOES FROM LOURDES

On February 6th, I celebrated myanniversary as a Marist priest. As Ilook back over the past 57 years, I askmyself, “Would I do it over again,knowing what I know now?” And theanswer I would give is “Yes,” notbecause it has been easy (it hasn’t) butbecause it has been a rewarding and sat-isfying life.

Some people would say, “Howcould it be rewarding and satisfying ifyou were not free to marry and have afamily of your own, if you were notfree to do what you wanted to do or gowhere you wanted to go, and if youwere not free to make your way in theworld and make a name for yourself?”And the answer to that is that there aremany kinds of rewards and satisfac-tions in life, and you cannot experiencethem all. The Bible says “All fulfill-ment has its limits.”

So we have to be able to do twothings: (1) Make a choice(s) and (2)Live by the choices we have made.

Someone once told me, “We livewith our choices,” and I have to agree.At least if we are reasonable and maturepeople, people who are not afraid toreach out to God and ask for the graceswe need to get through each new day.To be a “Marist” is to look at life in acertain way and to be willing to work atbecoming more and more like Mary inher attitude, values, and disposition.Those who think that this is easy do notunderstand what is involved. Did youever try to change your husband or

By Rev. Roland Lacasse, s.m.

wife? Did you ever try to changesomething you did not like about your-self?

It’s only by the grace of God thatanyone can change for the better. Oh,you can change for the worse by your-self, and many do! But to change forthe better, you need God’s help, God’sgrace. In addition to prayer and a per-sonal relationship with God, some ofthe things that have helped me toweather “the storms of life” in the past57 years are as follows:

A sense of humor. This is really anexpression of humility, especiallywhen the joke is on you. My motherwas right when she said to me one day,“If you’re not worth a laugh, you’re notworth much.” My mother was thePresident of her Third Order of Marygroup at one time, and she realized theimportance of not taking oneself tooseriously. We should take our workseriously, but we should not take our-selves too seriously. A real Marist willnever consider himself or herself moreimportant than others.

Never over-react. This is easiersaid than done, but we have to work atit. Many of us have to learn to controlour emotions. It’s not easy. When Iwas stationed in Boston in the late1970s, I remember being cut off by ataxi, and I wanted to ram him!Recently I was driving on Routh 495and a big truck cut me off when I wasin the passing lane, and I threw up myhands in disgust. The fact that there is

so much “road rage” nowadays is proofthat many have never learned not toover-react. Parents frequently fail toteach their children the importance ofself-discipline. They want to give theirchildren everything they never had, butin doing so they fail to give them thingsthey did have, like discipline!

Reach out to others. Not just yourrelatives and friends, and not just thosewho you are attracted to. Our attitudeshould be one of openness to others.Someone once said, “When a person isall wrapped up in himself/herself, thepackage is small.” We can either livefor ourselves, or we can live for others.But there is no doubt what a realMarist’s orientation in life should be.Mary at Cana could have said to her-self, “It’s none of my business if theyran out of wine. It’s their problem.”Instead, she “owned” the problem andsaid to the stewards, “Do whatever mySon tells you.” Mary had spoken toJesus already, realizing that she had toreach out to others, if she was to be theperson God wanted her to be.

Hang in there. My mother used tosay, “Ca va se passer.” One of myfavorite poems is entitled “Don’t quit.”Another one goes like this…”It is easyenough to be pleasant when life goesalong like a song, but the one who’sworthwhile is the one who can smile,

Reflections of a Marist Priest

Continued on page 5

Rev. Roland lacaSSe, S.M.


By Fr. Frank Grispino, S.M.

Grace ComesTailor-Made

God’s grace is ever available. Hismercy knows no bounds. It oftenhappens that the ones who visit thesick to offer consolation leave thebedside finding themselves the onesconsoled. I have heard this fromothers and I, myself, have experi-enced it.

Former Drug AddictThis story took place at a college

campus. I noticed this particular stu-dent coming down to the parking lotin his wheelchair. He pushed a but-ton and the rear door of his vanopened up and out popped a plat-form that lazily lowered and stoppedat ground level. Once on the plat-form he was lifted up into the van.From there he managed to get intothe driver’s seat. Thanks to technol-ogy he drove off, all the controls athis fingertips.

His StoryHe was hooked on drugs. Living

in a moody and hellish state, he wasmiserable. One day, under the influ-ence, he smashed his car into a tree.Paralyzed from the waist down, he islucky to be alive. Are you sorry forhim? Don’t be! He’s not. Heexplains that since the accident hehas been off drugs. He sees in this

tragedy the hand of God. He nolonger lives in a foggy, messed uplife. He is graduating soon and theprospects for a job as a counselorlook promising. Then came thewords spoken in all honesty, “If whathappened to me was what I neededto straighten out my life, I welcomeit.”

What it Means to SurviveWhat I find striking in this tragic

account is that he did not return to alife before addiction, but got his lifeback and then some – despite hisparalysis. He was exhilarated andfull of optimism. He has prevailedor, as we would say today, he is a sur-vivor. Those who survive, who pre-vail, have wounds to show as a resultof their misfortune, but a betterhuman being all the same.

Grace AboundsHave you ever seen a man in a

wheelchair or a blind person using acane as a path finder and say to your-self, “I could never live that way!”You say that because you are not inthat person’s shoes and are unable toassess the truth of the matter untilyou actually find yourself in thatpredicament. Once you are experi-

encing what you imaginativelyabhorred may well be a gamechanger. Human nature is veryresilient, and grace builds on nature.Misfortunes and adversity invitecorresponding grace. With adversi-ty comes the grace to cope. Noadversity, no grace. Not onlydoes grace abound, it’s much likethe glove that fits the size of thehand.

A Story with a MoralA man is walking to work one

morning. He notices, once again,that his right shoulder is botheringhim. It’s the cross he is carrying.Now he is wise enough to knowthat we all have crosses to bear inlife. But he now feels that his crossis a bit much. Looking up, henotices a sign: St. Joseph’sWorkshop. Odd, he never noticed itbefore. He enters and sees racksand racks of crosses of all sizes. Hemakes a beeline for the children’ssection. He becomes embarrassedthat he a grown man looking atcrosses made for the little folks.Sheepishly, he makes his way to theadult section. He spies one thatstrikes his fancy. He shoulders itand prances before the mirror. It

Continued on page 5

“My grace is sufficient for you” 2 Corinthians 12,9.

Purgatorialsfor

the DeceasedName

Address

City

State Zip

Phone #

Requested by:Suggested offering: $10.00 (perpetual)

Our Lady’sPurgatorial

Society

each year your enrolleddeceased and loved onesare remembered duringthe 365 daily Masses cele-brated by the MaristFathers. an attractive cer-tificate framed in a bluefolder with a colorful pic-ture of our lady is sent tothe donor or recipient.


Continued from page 4Fr. Grispinolooks good, but too light to bear. Hetries another, but too heavy. The try-ing on for the right size and weightgoes on for a while until he spots across by itself in the corner againstthe wall. It’s a perfect fit! He nowleaves giving St. Joseph a wave and

a cheerful, “Thank you!”Before the door closes behind him

he hears the words of St. Joseph,“The cross you are leaving with is thesame one you came in with.” Thanksto the grace bestowed by theHeavenly Father we can say: Gracecomes Tailor-Made. n

Continued from page 3Fr. Lacassewhen everything goes dead wrong.”Remember the song, “I NeverPromised You A Rose Garden!”

Bloom where you are planted.So, life has handed you lemonsinstead of peaches and cream, makelemonade! The lament of the marriedman is “Would someone please tellme how I picked a lemon in the “gar-den of love” when I thought onlypeaches grow?”

Some people say you are “gifted”

from birth or not, and that whateverqualities you possess are qualities youinherited from your parents. This is ahuge over-simplification. The parableof the talents reminds us that whatevertalents we possess have to be workedat and developed. People have said tome, “You must have had wonderfulparents,” and I say to myself, “I did,but the grace of God took up wherethey left off, and I had to co-operatewith that grace. And so do you! n

Our email address is:[email protected]@yahoo.com

Our website is:www.lourdescenter.org


FLORA DEORA, ILFRANCES EILEEN VEZINA, MIFELIX ARAMBULA, TXMIKE RICHARD, TXEDWARD PASZKIEWICZ, ILCUSHMAN K. PINAO, HICORBETT DUHON, SR., LAMARY A. FLYNN, PAFRED BROADHACKER, MOHELEN BROWER, MICLARA HILL, MIESTHER WACKER, MOSUZETTE CANONIZADO, ORELEANOR DIVENTURA, PASTEPHANIE DAYTON, PADORIS BURNS, MSJOSEPH SMITH, MDLILLIAM CANTON, CALORETA S. FERBES FELIX, GAALICE TOBENS, TNBEVERLY SINCLAIR, MTDOROTHY DE NOVA, NYKATHLEEN CORSON, WYHOWARD WARREN KRAUSS, VAPAT KNOP, MIRITA SACK, PAROBERT L. SPANG, NJRUTH GULLAGE, MAJOHN M. KENNEY, MAAGNES PRINCIPE, PABERNICE LESNIAK, ILSR. GRACIS SCHMITT, IACHERYL SVGITA, HIANN G. ALBRECHT, MAMAURO BACOLO, NJEUGENE SCHOENBAUER, MNEDITH FERRETTI, PAARLINE RHEAUME, MAMARGARET H LUCAS, CTGREGORY M. TAKACS, CAJOE & GLADYS OPPOLD, IASR. RITA ST. ONGE, CTLUCILLE NEWTON, WIKAREN RODRIGUES, RINICHOLAS & MARY DOFFING, KSMARGARET WYDERKA, WI

We have been notified that the fol-lowing friends of the LourdesCenter have passed away. Pleasejoin us in remembering them inyour prayers.

Do you know someone who wouldlike to receive Echoes from Lourdes?Give them a FRee SUbScRIPtIon!Send their names and addresses. Use a separate sheet if necessary.

E-mail the information to: [email protected] it to:

Lourdes CenterP.O. Box 15575

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ESTHER BALTIERRA, TXCLARA GAYLIN LARSON, SDHELEN E. MOLIHAN, MACECILIA GROLEAU, WIBEATRICE A. PICHE, MIRITA WILLIAMS, NCSR. RENE FISCHER, D.C., INMARY M. SCHAFER, OHHELEN NEWBERG, MNGEORGE KRISKO, OHLINDA AREENEAUX, LAPENNY D. STIMLEY, INLOVELY MOSES, HIALICE D. DAVID, LACONCHA SANCHEZ, TXMARIA HEREDIA, MARAYMOND HUBER, ILFRED BROADHACKER, MOMARGARET THORNTON, WIMARY SEVEC, AZDOROTHY MEIER, MNDOLORES C. HENLEY, LAAQUILINO BRAVO, CADANIEL J. DALY, MAWILLIE B. THAIS, NMFRANK PURZYCKI, NYFRANK FERGUSON, MAWILLIAM D. MATTIO, MAJAMES WENDLAND, MD

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...is an expression of my faith...my trust in God’smercy.Offering to cover shipping &handling $______________N.B. A donation of $3.00 perbottle is suggested to coverour expenses. When the offer-ing permits, we use PriorityMail. We will accept orders of1-3-5-6-and 10 bottles. Formultiples thereof and forunusual numbers requested,we reserve the right to sendwhat is both just and feasible.

others who are ill, and pray for them.Being single and never married, theBlessed Mother has taken good careof me and I owe her a lot. Passing onthe word of “Lourdes” is a must. I dothis by giving bottles of water to thosein need. I just want you to know howblessed I’ve been. VA

M.M. – I want to share with youthe very special blessing I havereceived from Our Lady. Severalweeks ago I had an appointment withthe vascular surgeon to check on myaortic aneurysm. Every six months Ihave an ultrasound to be sure itdoesn’t change or get worse. I waitedin her office after the ultrasound andafter she checked it she came into theroom with a big smile and said, “Youdon’t have to come to see me any-more – it’s gone.” She gave me a bighug and repeated, “You don’t have tocome and see me anymore unless

your legs get more painful – but theaortic aneurysm is gone.” – anotherbig smile and another hug – end ofvisit. I was so amazed and so verythankful. I thank God! The nextmorning as I was washing and show-ering I realized it was through theintercession of Our Lady. I use yourLourdes water faithfully every morn-ing – on my head, chest, abdomen –the “hurting” parts. I also put it on myhusband’s back as I put on the daily“grease” for his serious skin cancerand ask Our Lady of Lourdes to prayfor us. Thank you, Our Lady ofLourdes! And thanks to all of youwho make this precious gift availableto all of us! I forgot to mention thatmy husband’s serious problems havebeen in what they are calling “remis-sion” as they stay the same and do notget worse as they were expected to.He is 81 years old and I am 79. Godbless you all! WA

M.R. I am a faithful user ofLourdes Water and went toLourdes, France back in August1980. I have gone through cancersurgery and lost both breasts and anovary in 1982. Other major surger-ies include thyroid removal,cataracts, brain tumor removal, andkidney tumor removal. I owe myhealth and life to the Holy Family,especially the Blessed Mother, forbeing with me through all my earth-ly experiences. I will be 76 thiscoming September, and just can’tsay enough to people how ourBlessed Mother does intercede forus and does take care of us. But,you must give her and the HolyFamily “thanks” daily. I use thisLourdes Water always, pass it on to

lourdes centerMarist FathersLourdes BureauP.O. Box 15575698 Beacon StreetBoston, MA 02215-2594617-536-2761

[email protected]

lourdes echoesPublished bi-monthly to promote devotionof Our Lady and interest in her shrine atLourdes.

Director: Rev. Andrew Albert, S.M. Asst. Director: Rev. Roland Lacasse, S.M. Printed with Ecclesiastical Approval

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our lady and the agnostic - lourdes center

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