by René Coste PSS

In order to understand the founding message communicated to Catherine Labouré we have to think back to the series of apparitions as a whole: the apparition revealing Saint Vincent's heart, the times that Our Lord appeared in the Blessed Sacrament, the apparitions of the Blessed Virgin.

The apparition of the Blessed Virgin on 27th November 1830 is of crucial importance. This was the one that would give concrete form to the mission entrusted to Sister Catherine: the medal which was so novel and so rich in symbolism that it wasn't long before the people called it the Miraculous Medal.

It was a woman of indescribable beauty who appeared to St. Catherine; a resplendent woman reflecting the beauty of God, the beauty of the glory that radiates from Christ at the Transfiguration as it will one day radiate from those who have risen and the glory which, by grace, can be reflected 'as in a mirror' on human countenances even here on earth., (cf. I Cor 15:43).

Meditating on God's beauty and on the grace of the beauty he bestows on the saints, is one of the important traditions in theology and eastern spirituality. The beauty that transfigures the face of Mary and the clusters of 'rays of wondrous beauty' that flow from Mary's hands in the vision of the Medal, are one of the most striking expressions of this beauty to be found in Western Christian tradition. The rays are even more significant since they are there as 'the symbol of the graces that Mary obtains for humankind'. [The colour of her robe (the whiteness of early dawn) serves to emphasise in its own way, the beauty of Mary Immaculate who, from the first moment of her existence, lived in God's light.].

This wonderful vision of beauty unfolded against the background of a picture around which Sister Catherine read the invocation, written in letters of gold, 'O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to you'. As was to happen later on at Lourdes, Mary was seen as the Immaculate Conception, a very powerful aspect of Marian devotion in western Catholicism in the nineteenth century.

Let us recall the very precious evocation of this in some words from the Second Vatican Council: 'It was customary for the Fathers to refer to the Mother of God as all holy and free from every stain of sin, fashioned by the Holy Spirit and formed as a new creature. Enriched from the first instant of her conception with the splendour of an entirely unique holiness...' (Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, no.56).

In the course of the vision, the medal turns over and on the back of it Catherine makes out the letter M surmounted by a small cross and underneath, the sacred hearts of Jesus and Mary. This final stage of the vision is tremendously important. It reveals Mary as being totally oriented towards Christ the Redeemer, as His mother and as the Servant of the Lord (Lk 1:38), as the one who was always careful to live in accordance with the light of God's Word (Lk 2:23) and as the one who spoke to the servants at the marriage feast of Cana, and through them to the whole world, saying, 'Do whatever he tells you'. (Jn 2:5). This vision is a strong vindication of Mary's powerful intercession.

But it is precisely the work of 'intercession': a motherly intercession as at Cana and the intercession of the handmaid she always desired to be. Her heavenly mission is 'the glory of God', as she said in her first apparition, defining the aim of the mission she was going to confide to Sister Catherine. If, in the founding message of the 1830 apparitions the glory of God is reflected in Mary, it is because through her intercession and intervention that humankind comes to discover and to love the God who is Love. In short, Mary is an evangeliser.

The medal is an icon for the poor. Most often it is made from metal that has no market value and costs almost nothing. Anybody at all can obtain it. Wearing the medal is a sign of confidence in and devotion to her who, in the order of grace is our mother, just as a family heirloom - especially a wedding ring - can have great sentimental value.

We humans need signs and symbols. The overwhelming popularity of the medal and its effectiveness show what a marvellous idea it was. Devotion to Our Lady is one of Christianity's most important traditions. According to the New Testament, Mary is closely associated with the mysteries of the Incarnation and Redemption. Mary is God's gift to humanity and is also the path that leads to Him.

The medal, as part of the whole founding message of the 1830 apparitions to Catherine Labouré, is a means of evangelisation. We have to look beyond the symbolism and strive to discover the whole message and then put it into practice.