An Explanation of My Stash of Miraculous Medals

The Miraculous Medal
"O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have
recourse to thee!"

It was my last day teaching at Cathedral Academy. The last day came earlier than I had expected because I’d just been told I wouldn’t be able to make the Thirty Day Retreat as a Jesuit novice. I went into each classroom just to say goodbye to the kids I’d taught that Fall. I didn’t tell them I’d been dismissed, just that my grandfather was sick and I was going to have to go back to Maine sooner than I’d planned. They were tough goodbyes.

When I got to the 5^th grade classroom, I told them what a wonderful four months it had been teaching them religion every Tuesday and Thursday and that I was going to have to leave earlier than expected. I went to leave the classroom when the kids objected.

“You can’t leave Br. Joe! Teach us one more thing!” I looked at Ms. Pickard. She shrugged her shoulders and smiled. “Teach us one more thing, Br. Joe! Just one more thing!” I said okay.

Mother Teresa was deeply
devoted to the Miraculous Medal

After a moment of thought, I pulled out my Miraculous Medal. “Do you guys see this? I got it in Calcutta, India when I was working with the Missionaries of Charity.  Do you know what it is? Our Lady appeared to St. Catherine Laboure back in the 1850s and showed her the image on this medal.[1] It’s like a mini-catechism. All the essential truths of our faith are symbolized here. Our Lady promised to take care of whoever wore this medal and miracles have been attributed through her prayers.” My eyes were dry up till now, but it became more difficult as I went on.

“Mother Teresa was very devoted to the Miraculous Medal. She used to hand them out by the fistfuls and say that whenever you’re in need, simply kiss the Miraculous Medal and say, ‘Mary be a mother to me now’ and you can always be sure that you will have a mother in her. You guys will be in middle school not too long from now. Things will get tough. There will be times when your faith is shaken and you feel alone. Don’t. Just kiss the medal and say, ‘Mary, be a mother to me now.’ She’ll always take care of you. Trust me.” The kids had sat with rapt attention through this last lesson. When I’d finished, they ran up to me, gave me a big group hug and promised me that they would all strive to become saints.

The altar of the Miraculous Medal
in the Basilica of the National Shrine
in DC. I used to pray here often.

I had known from when I began that my time at Cathedral Academy would be short. I would have a few privileged months to help guide them towards Christ. But when my time was done, I had to rest content with whatever I had been able to do up till that point. Now there was nothing to do but to put them in Our Lady’s hands. I had to leave, but she would never leave them. I entrusted her with their guidance and protection, knowing that whenever they were in need of a mother, she would be there for them.

A month later I ordered a bulk shipment of Miraculous Medals and sent half of them to my former classes at Cathedral Academy.

A lot of you at CYFM have gotten Miraculous Medals from me. In fact, judging from the number I have left, roughly fifty of you have gotten Miraculous Medals. If you were wondering where I got so many, now you know. If you were wondering what the Miraculous Medal was and didn’t catch the brief, muttered explanation I gave as I handed it to you, check out this link: http://www.motherofallpeoples.com/2004/09/mother-teresa-and-the-miraculous-medal/ However, if you were wondering, “Why?” I wanted to take a moment to answer that.

"Woman, behold thy son!"

The Miraculous Medal is powerful. As Christ hung the cross, He turned to St. John and said, “Son, behold thy Mother.” Then He turned to Our Lady and said, “Woman, behold thy son.” In that moment, He wasn’t just talking about St. John. Christ gave us the greatest gift He had: that the love Mary had given Him would now be given to the world. He made Mary the mother of the whole human race.[2]

The Miraculous Medal is a sign of her motherly love for us and she gave it to us herself. See those rays that radiate from her fingertips on the Miraculous Medal? Those are rays of grace being poured out through her intercession for her children. She is constantly praying for us before the throne of her Son. See the serpent under her feet? That’s the devil: she’s stomping on his head. All the dangers and afflictions we face she drives away so that nothing will keep us from her Son. See how on the back there’s an M and a bar through it with a cross on top? That’s Mary calling us to the altar, to be fed by an intimate union with her Son.

We all need a mother sometimes: someone to care for us, someone to guide us, someone to pick us up when we fall. I know in my life Mary has been just that mother to me. The word “miraculous” wouldn’t be an unfair to describe the way she has come to through to me. I won’t describe it here but if you want to know about miracles associated with the Miraculous Medal, those are no secret. The most famous story is about the conversion of an anti-Catholic Jew named Alphonse Ratisbonne: http://www.marypages.com/ratisbonneEng.htm He converted to the Faith when Our Lady herself appeared to him while he was wearing the medal. A more modern and less well known miracle is recounted here by Fr. Hardon: http://www.therealpresence.org/eucharst/mir/mirmedal.htm A young boy came out of a coma as Fr. Hardon put the medal around his neck.

Our Lady appearing to St. Catherine Laboure

None of you (that I know of) need a miraculous cure right now nor do I think a Marian apparition is necessary to strengthen your faith. But I suspect there are times when you do need a mother. It’s not that your own mother’s not adequate, but you will need the love of your mother in Heaven. Simply kiss the medal and she will comfort you when you are down. Kiss the medal and you will find guidance when you're lost and confused. Kiss the medal and the most determined and powerful intercessor will be praying for you in Heaven: the mother of the King of Kings and your mother. 

I hope in the course of this year I’ve pointed you in some way toward Christ. It’s given me great joy watching you encounter His joy and His love; for every talk I’ve given, for every small group I’ve led, there have been a lot more prayers after the fact aimed at the people I gave those talks to. But like my time at Cathedral Academy, it’s short. While my presence fades, my desire to see you grow in your faith and live in Christ’s love and joy doesn’t. So now like my kids at Cathedral Academy, I’m placing all of you in Our Lady’s hands. May Mary be always a mother to you!

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[1] For a more in depth account of the apparitions to St. Catherine Laboure, check out this article: http://www.miraclesofthechurch.com/2010/11/miraculous-medal-apparition-of-virgin.html

[2] For the theological skeptics, consider that just as Christ is the new Adam, Mary is the new Eve. Through Eve’s disobedience, sin entered the world. Through Mary’s yes to bearing the Son of God, sin and death were conquered. Eve was the first to know sin; Mary was the first conceived without it. Finally, Eve the first woman was the mother of the human race. Now Mary, the second Eve is made mother of all the faithful. That’s why Christ doesn’t refer to her as “mother” but as “woman,” the woman foretold in Genesis who would stomp on the head of Satan, the second Eve, now the mother of all the redeemed.