Propagation of the Medal.

ITS WONDERFUL CIRCULATION—CANONICAL INVESTIGATION ORDERED BY MGR. DE QUÉLEN.

We have already seen with what mistrust M. Aladel received Sister Catherine's communications, and how he hesitated to assume the mission proposed to him. At last, after grave reflection, after consultations with enlightened persons, and upon the formal authorization of Mgr. de QuÉlen, Archbishop of Paris, he decided to have the medal of the Immaculate Conception struck. This was in 1832.

When about to depict the details as related by the Sister, many difficulties presented themselves. In what attitude should the Blessed Virgin be represented, for in the apparition she had several? Should a globe be in her hands? Again, at one instant she was enveloped in waves of light, but this could not be gracefully reproduced in an engraving. After mature consideration, it was decided to adopt the already existing model of the Immaculate Virgin, which represents her with hands extended; to this were added the luminous rays escaping from the rings on her fingers, the terrestrial globe on which she stands, and the serpent she crushes under her feet. Around the oval were inscribed these words: "O Mary! conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee!" The reverse bears the letter M, surmounted by a cross, and the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary below the M, the first surrounded with a crown of thorns, the second pierced by a sword.

"As soon as the medal was struck," says M. Aladel, "it was freely circulated, especially among the Daughters of Charity, who, knowing something of its origin, wore it with great confidence. Shortly after, they gave it to several sick persons, six of whom experienced most beneficial results. Three cures and three conversions were wrought, some of them in Paris and some in the diocese of Meaux, all of a very sudden and unexpected nature. And now there was heard everywhere a great demand for the Miraculous Medal, the medal which heals—virtuous mothers of families giving it as a New-Year's present to their children, who received it so gladly and wore it with such respect that no one could doubt how their innocent hearts prized it. All the pious hastened to procure it as soon as it was known to be within reach; but the event it gives us most pleasure to record here, and which edified us most in these early days of the propagation of the medal, is that, in two cities of the province, nearly all the young people united in wearing the medal as the safeguard of their youth. Four hundred silver medals were sent for, to be indulged for this purpose. Very soon entire parishes in various counties solicited their pastors to get them medals, and in Paris an officer of high rank bought sixty for brother officers at their request.

"Thus, the medals of the Immaculate Conception were circulated in a truly wonderful manner, in all the provinces and among all classes; from every side we heard most consoling things; priests filled with the spirit of God wrote to us that these medals reanimated piety in the cities as well as in the country; grand vicars, enjoying the high esteem due their piety and intellect, prelates, even more distinguished, assured us of their entire confidence in the medals, which they regarded as means sent by Providence to revive the faith so sensibly enfeebled in our age; that in reality they did awaken faith daily in many hearts apparently devoid of it, that they re-established peace and union in families divided by discord, in fine, that not one of all those wearing the medal but had experienced most salutary effects.

"Mgr. de QuÉlen himself (whose great charity brought him in contact with all classes) told me several times, that he had given the medal to numbers of sick persons of every condition in life, and never had he failed to recognize the blessed results. Very soon he publishes these in a circular of December 15th, 1836, on the occasion of consecrating the parish church of Our Lady of Loretto. It is a fact we are jealous of confirming, and the knowledge of which we desire should reach even the most remote parts of the Catholic world; in our diocese this devotion has become more deeply rooted with time; the afflicted still affirm, increase and extend its marvelous progress; signal favors, graces of healing, preservation and salvation seem to multiply among us, in proportion as we implore the tender pity of Mary conceived without sin. 'We exhort the faithful,' adds he in the beginning of the same circular, 'to wear the medal struck a few years ago in honor of the Blessed Virgin,' and to repeat frequently the prayer inscribed around the image: 'O Mary! conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee!'

"Moreover, in every part of France have we witnessed the increasing eagerness of the faithful of all ages, sexes and conditions, to procure the Miraculous Medal. Careless Christians, hardened sinners, Protestants, the impious and even Jews, asked for it, received it with pleasure and wore it with religious veneration.

"Not only in France were we forced to admire the propagation of the medal; it spread rapidly and extensively throughout Switzerland, Piedmont, Italy, Spain, Belgium, England, America, in the Levant, and even China. It is also said, that at Naples, as soon as they heard of it, the Metropolitan Chapter sent for some to one of our establishments in that city, that the king had silver medals struck for all the royal family and court, and a million of another medal, which were distributed during the cholera—that the image is there venerated in nearly every house, and the picture in several churches. At Rome, the Superior Generals of religious orders took pains to circulate it, and the Sovereign Pontiff himself, placed it at the foot of his crucifix. We also received a letter informing us that His Holiness gave it to several persons as a particular mark of his pontifical affection.

"Moreover, to estimate the propagation of this medal, it suffices to consult the registry of M. Vachette, to whom was entrusted the striking of it.[11] This examen shows that, from June, 1832, to the present time, he has sold: 1st, two millions in silver or gold; 2d, eighteen millions of a cheaper metal. According to him, eleven other manufacturers in Paris have sold the same quantity; at Lyons, four others with whom he was acquainted, at least double the number; and in many other cities, whether of France or foreign countries, the manufacture and sales are incalculable."

Struck with this marvelous propagation, and the universal anxiety to learn the origin of the medal, Sister Catherine's pious Director published, in 1834, a short notice containing a brief narration of the apparition, and of the graces obtained by means of the medal. This book sold rapidly, and new editions had to be printed; when the eighth appeared in 1842, the number of copies sold amounted to a hundred and thirty thousand, and each successive edition was increased by well authenticated accounts of many new miraculous occurrences.

In consequence of all this, the venerable priest found himself engaged in a vast and active correspondence, which, to the end of his days, filled his heart with ineffable consolation, at the thought of his thus assisting in the accomplishment of the Immaculate Mary's promises throughout the universe.

Among the communications he received in the course of the year 1836, there was one which appeared to him the confirmation of Sister Catherine's vision. He published it in the notice of the medal. It was the vision of a Swiss religious, already favored with many extraordinary graces. We reproduce it here for the edification of the reader:

"The 17th of August, 1835, the first day of her retreat, this religious, in an ecstasy after Holy Communion, sees Our Lord seated upon a throne of glory, and holding a sword in His hand. 'Where goest thou, and what seekest thou?' He asked. 'O Jesus!' she answered, 'I go to Thee, and it is Thyself alone I seek!' 'Where dost thou seek Me, in what and through whom?' 'Lord, in myself I seek Thee, in Thy holy will and through Mary.' Here Our Lord disappeared, and the religious, awaking from her ecstasy, was reflecting upon His words, when there suddenly appeared to her the Blessed Virgin, all lovely and resplendent. She held in her hand a medal, on which was engraven her image and the inscription: 'O Mary! conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee!' And sheaves of light gleamed from her hands. 'These rays,' said Mary to her, 'are symbols of the graces I obtain for men.' She then turned the medal, and the religious saw on the reverse the letter M surmounted by a little cross, beneath which were the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary. 'Wear this medal,' said the Queen of Heaven, 'and thou wilt enjoy my very especial protection; take pains, also, that all who are in any pressing necessity wear it, that efforts are made to procure it for them.... Be in readiness, for I will put it upon thee myself, on the Feast of my beloved servant Bernard; to day, I leave it in thy hands.' The Blessed Virgin afterwards reproached her for misplacing the medal and taking little pains to find it; the religious acknowledged indeed, that she had received it in July, and that having lost it, she really gave herself no anxiety, considering it merely an ordinary medal, knowing neither its origin nor its effects till this vision. This is attested by the Superior of the Community. The Blessed Virgin kept her promise, and on the 20th of the same month, the Feast of St. Bernard, she placed on the neck of the religious, the medal she had already put in her hands, recommending her to wear it respectfully, to repeat the invocation frequently, and to apply herself to the invitation of the Immaculate Mary's virtues.

"During her retreat in August, 1836, she sees the medal every day, suspended, as it were, in the air. At first, it appeared very high, shining a few moments like the sun, then like gold; again, it seemed not so high and was apparently of silver; finally, very near the earth, and of a baser metal. The religious gazed in admiration, though without comprehending the meaning of this vision, until Vespers, when it was explained to her. A sweet but unfamiliar voice asked her which of these medals she preferred. She answered, the most brilliant, and the same voice congratulating her on the choice she had made, told her, that the brilliant medal shining like the sun, was that of faithful Christians, who, in wearing it, honor Mary perfectly, and contribute to her glory; the gold medal, that of pious persons who have a tender and filial devotion to Mary, but who keeping it within their hearts, advance but slightly this divine Mother's cause; the silver medal, that of all who wear it with respect and devotion, but who sometimes lack constancy and generosity in imitating Mary's virtues—finally, that the brass medal, represented that of all, who contenting themselves with invoking Mary, take no pains to walk in her footsteps, and thus remain sadly attached to earth. The same voice added, that there is, however, a very especial and peculiar union among these various persons, marked, we might say, with the precious seal of Mary Immaculate; they all necessarily aid one another in a very particular manner by prayer, so that with this powerful assistance, the third can elevate the last, the second sustain the third, and the first, thus happily attract all the others.

"These details have been communicated to us, from the abbey of Our Lady of Hermits at Einsiedlen, so renowned for the great virtues of its fervent religious, and the immense concourse of pilgrims, who repair hither from all parts of the world."

Up to this time, the medal had received only the verbal approbation of the Archbishop of Paris; a formal authorization was necessary to assure the faithful of its authenticity, and to conform moreover to the laws of the Church, which exact a canonical judgment, before permitting the introduction of new images in the liturgical worship. A juridical examination was consequently requested, in order to confirm the origin of the medal.

Mgr. de QuÉlen willingly complied, and by his order an investigation was begun February 16th, 1836, under the direction of M. Quentin, Vicar General, Promoter of the diocese; it was prolonged into the month of July, and had not less than nineteen sittings.

We still possess the verbal process of this inquiry. Various witnesses appeared, the principal of whom was Sister Catherine's Director, M. Aladel.

In the course of the process, the Promoter asked, why God had chosen the Daughters of Charity for so rare a favor, and not one of those convents noted for the observance of an austere rule, such as rigorous fasts, mortifications, etc. For it was not in a contemplative order, but in the Mother House of this modest institution so useful to humanity, in the chapel which for a long time contained the mortal remains of St. Vincent, the father of the poor, that the apparition, which was the model of the medal, took place.

We believe the reason of this preference is to be found in the two usages observed among the Daughters of Charity, from the beginning of their Society; the first, an act of consecration to the Blessed Virgin on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception; the second, the ending each decade of the chaplet by the following profession of faith: "O Most Holy Virgin! I believe and confess thy Holy and Immaculate Conception, pure and without spot! O Most Pure Virgin! by thy virginal purity, by thy Immaculate Conception and thy glorious quality of Mother of God, obtain for me of thy dear Son, humility, charity, great purity of heart, body and soul, holy perseverance in my dear vocation, the gift of prayer, a good life and a happy death."

The proofs admitted in the inquiry to establish the authenticity of the vision of the medal, are:

1st. The Sister's character—she is a poor young country girl, uneducated and without talent—of solid but simple piety, good judgment, and calm, sedate mind; we perceive at once that everything about her excludes all suspicion of deceit or illusion. The better to preserve her incognito, she will not allow her name to be mentioned, and she even refused to appear before the Promoter of the investigation.

2d. The wisdom of the Sister's Director, who took all possible precautions to guard against deception, and who yielded to his penitent's reiterated entreaties, only from fear of displeasing the Blessed Virgin, and by the advice of his Superiors.

3d. The apparition in itself, contains nothing, either in its character or object, opposed to the teachings of the Church, but is, on the contrary, conducive to edification. Being several times renewed and always in the same manner, we may conclude, that the Sister's imagination had nothing whatever to do with it.

4th. The wonderful circulation of the medal, confirmed by the testimony of the first engraver, M. Vachette, and the extensive sales of copies of the notice, reaching 109,000 in sixteen months, as attested by the publisher, M. Bailly, must be regarded as a confirmation of its supernatural origin.

5th. The extraordinary graces obtained through the instrumentality of the medal, cures and conversions, several of which are legally attested by the deposition of reliable witnesses, who appeared before the Promoter and signed the verbal process, give a last proof to the fact it was sought to establish, namely, that the Miraculous Medal must be of divine origin. Such is the formal conclusion, in the report addressed to the Archbishop by the Promoter, at the end of the inquiry.

Unfortunately, the ecclesiastical authority did not pronounce judgment; we know not why the inquiry did not receive the sanction to which it apparently led. The death of Mgr. de QuÉlen, at the end of the year 1839, caused all proceedings to be abandoned. Everything remains still in the domain of private devotions, and the model of the Immaculate Virgin, with its symbolical attributes, is not yet authorized as an object of public veneration in the churches.

This deplorable omission is so much the more difficult to understand, as, personally, Mgr. de QuÉlen took a serious interest in the apparition of 1830, the compass of which he comprehended. It was he who urged M. Aladel to have the medal struck; he expressed a wish to have some of the first; he received them, and experienced their efficacy. Before ordering the investigation, he had summoned to him the Mother General of the Daughters of Charity, together with the officers forming her council, and other Sisters well versed in Community affairs, to learn from them what usages of the Community could have drawn down upon it such a favor as the Blessed Virgin had just bestowed. Not content with possessing the Miraculous Medal, the pious prelate had in his own chamber a statue of the Immaculate Conception after the Sister's model. It was cast in bronze, under his own eyes, as he wished to assist at the operation. When, in 1839, the solemn octave of the Immaculate Conception was celebrated in the diocese of Paris, for the first time, this statue, on a throne surrounded with flowers, was exposed to the veneration of the faithful. The 1st of January of this same year, he consecrated his diocese to Mary Immaculate.

In commemoration of this, he had a picture painted, which represents him standing at the foot of Mary's statue, his eyes fixed upon her with love and confidence. The statue rests upon a globe which bears these words: "Virgo fidelis." And the invocation, "Regina, sine labe concepta, ora pro nobis," is inscribed upon the picture.

On the Feast of the Assumption, he presented this picture to his chapter, that it might, he said, be a monument of his devotion and that of the chapter of Paris to the Immaculate Conception of the Mother of God.[12]

A medal, bearing date of January 1, 1839, reproduces this picture upon one of its faces. On the other is a vessel, tempest-tossed, and a star guiding it to the haven of peace. These words of St. Bernard, "Respice stellam, voca Mariam,"[13] explain the allegory. The following lines complete the explanation:

"Vana, Hyacinthe, furit; Stella maris auspice, vincis."[14]