Miracles

By Mike Lambrecht

      Happy Easter! As you know, today we celebrate the great miracle of Christ's rising from the dead. It is truly a momentous occasion. How many times has the thought crossed our minds, "If only I were there to witness this great miracle, it would be so much easier to believe." Over the years, there have been numerous miracles relating to the Blessed Sacrament. I would like to share just a couple with you today.

      In Lanciano, Italy, around 750 A.D. a monk was saying Mass but was having doubts about the real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. After pronouncing the words of consecration he witnessed the bread and wine change into flesh and blood. He showed the miracle to all of those present. Even to this day, one can visit the chapel built there in 1636 to view the flesh and blood. In recent years, many laboratory tests have been done on the flesh and blood. Experts have confirmed that this is human flesh and blood-- and is preserved incorrupt.

      In 1889 Marie Louise Horeau went on a pilgrimage to Lourdes. She was completely blind and brought along a friend to act as her guide. On her second day there, at about 4 pm there was Benediction followed by a Eucharistic procession. She asked her friend to let her know when the Blessed Sacrament was just about to get to her. When her friend let her know she fell to her knees and cried out, "Hosanna, hosanna to the Son of God! Oh Good Master, have mercy on me! My Lord, let me see!" She experienced a stabbing pain in her eyes and a bright light. At that moment she was healed and her first sight was of the Bishop holding the monstrance with the Blessed Sacrament inside.  

      I would like to tell you today that miracles continue to happen and we have all witnessed them. They may not be as flashy as the miracles that we read about in the Gospel, but they are real nonetheless. Each and every Mass re-presents to us the sacrifice of Christ on Calvary and the Last Supper. At each Mass we witness the bread and wine change into the very body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit. Through faith, we know that this is true even though the appearance (accidents) remain that of bread and wine. That is truly a wondrous miracle for us to behold.

      While miracles are awe inspiring and can give us a temporary boost to our faith, let us not forget Jesus' own words when he said, "Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed."¹

¹ John 20:29

*If you would like to read more about miracles, see the book Eucharistic Miracles by Joan Carroll Cruz.