Miraculous Medal

On the night of July 18 to 19, 1830. At half past eleven at night, a child — probably her angel — wakes her. The child was dressed in white and was 4 or 5 years old. He leads her to the chapel to be with the Most Blessed Virgin. The child illuminates the corridors; the door of the chapel opens with a light touch from the child. The church is brightly lit. Our Lady arrives and sits in a chair. Catherine kneels beside her resting her hands on the mantle covering the knees of Saint Mary. They converse about various matters. Our Lady announces to her some calamities that will occur forty years later, as indeed happened. She also announced to her that she will have a divine mission. In the face of difficulties, she indicated that she should take refuge beside the altar: There, graces will be distributed to those who ask for them with confidence and fervor. Then Saint Mary left, and the child accompanied Catherine to her room, illuminating the corridors.

This is the great apparition. It took place on November 27, 1830 at half past five in the afternoon, while the novices were praying in the chapel. There the Most Blessed Virgin appeared to her in several scenes:

Scene 1: Our Lady with the globe The Most Blessed Virgin was standing, adopting the classic representation of the Immaculate Mary, that is, crushing the head of a serpent, of a greenish color with yellowish spots. In her hands near her waist, she was holding a golden globe representing the world, with a small cross on top. She was radiant with her eyes looking toward heaven, in an attitude of presenting an offering to God.

In this first image, our Lady offers the whole world crowned by the cross to God, while crushing the head of the serpent. It is the triumph of the Immaculate Mary. This is the victory that she will later announce at Fatima: she will succeed in presenting a Christian world to God.

In response to this offering of the Immaculate Mary, comes the obtaining of innumerable heavenly graces that she distributes among her children. Thus the continuation of the vision shows.

Scene 2: Our Lady of the luminous rays Suddenly I saw rings on her fingers, three on each finger; the largest near the hand, one of medium size in the middle and a smaller one at the extremity, and each one was covered with precious stones of proportionate size. Rays of light, some more beautiful than others, came from the precious stones; the larger stones emitted broader rays, the smaller ones, smaller; the rays were always extending in such a way that the whole lower part was covered by them and I no longer saw her feet.

The Most Blessed Virgin lowered her eyes looking at me and said these words: This globe represents the whole world, France and each person in particular. The rays are a symbol of the graces I pour out on those who ask them of me. These diamonds from which no rays come are the graces that people fail to ask of me.

Scene 3: The front of the Medal The globe disappeared, and the hands of our Lady with their radiant rings lowered, pointing toward the earth. A frame formed around the Most Blessed Virgin, somewhat oval, in which these words were read written in a semicircle, beginning at the level of the right hand, passing above the head of the Most Blessed Virgin and ending at the level of the left hand: O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to Thee!, written in golden letters. Then I heard a voice that said to me: — Have a medal struck according to this model, the persons who wear it around their neck will receive great graces. The graces will be abundant for the persons who wear it with confidence. Scene 4: The back of the Medal At that moment it seemed to me that the frame turned around. I saw on the back of the Medal the letter M, crowned with a cross, resting on a bar and, beneath the letter M the sacred hearts of Jesus and Mary, which I distinguished because one was surrounded by a crown of thorns and the other pierced by a sword.

The meaning of the M with the cross is quite clear if related to the previous vision of the Virgin with the globe. It is the same: Mary presenting a Christianized world to God. The bar is the surface of the earth upon which the cross rises. Precisely the so-called bar is situated in the upper third of the M, that is, at the height at which the hands of Mary were offering the world.

Thus, the medal reflects the two images of Mary: on one side pouring graces on the earth; on the back presenting a Christian world to God. Probably, Mary's humility did not wish to appear twice on the medal, and she devised the sign of the M with the cross. But she insisted on making the sculpture of her offering to God, because the anagram of the M representing it had not been understood.

The twelve stars recall the well-known vision of the Apocalypse: "A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars" (Rev 12, 1). A crown is spoken of and this indicates royalty and triumph.

One can then say that the back of the miraculous medal represents the heavenly triumph (the crown of stars) of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (beside the Heart of Jesus). A triumph that is realized when our Lady (the M) presents to God the world (the horizontal bar) Christianized (presided over by the cross).

The triumph will be the victory of love. For this reason, hearts are spoken of. That is, love for God, which fills the heart of Mary without stain of sin, will spread throughout the world. This is how the hatred of the devils will be overcome.

A month later, in December 1830, Catherine had a new apparition, similar to that of November 27, and at the same moment during the afternoon prayer.

It can be summarized in these points:

• An invitation to ask Mary for help. It is the principal message. This can be seen in the image of our Lady distributing abundant graces. And in the very text of the medal: O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to Thee!
• A call to attention toward the supernatural. To this contributes the spread of the medal and the miracles that followed.

The medal designed by Mary was made in 1832, and millions of copies spread very quickly. At first it was called "the medal of the Immaculate," but it soon came to be called the Miraculous Medal due to the number of miracles that occurred.

Toward the end of her life, Saint Catherine made the urgent request that a statue of our Lady offering the world to God be made. Very probably this requirement is due to an indication from Mary. Thus, the medal and the statue of the globe are the only ones ordered by our Lady in history.