Lourdes: Faith in Miracles

Located at the foot of the Pyrenees, the cave of Massabielle in Lourdes may appear as a modest cavity in the rock. However, for more than 150 years, it has held an enduring and enigmatic place among the most significant holy sites of Christianity. Each year, up to four million pilgrims from across the globe journey here to touch the sacred rock where it is said the Virgin Mary appeared. Such is the worldwide devotion to the cave that over a thousand replicas have been constructed around the world.

Lourdes is a place of fascination as it has been the site of numerous unexplained miracles, with over 70 cures proclaimed, often involving those who were gravely ill or disabled. The most recent recognized miracle occurred in 2008 when Bernadette Moriau, who had been suffering from an incurable degenerative lumbar root disease, made a full recovery. At the origin of all the miracles of Lourdes is the incredible story of Bernadette Soubirous, which would become one of the most fascinating enigmas of the 19th century. In 1858, the young girl is said to have seen a mysterious young woman dressed in white here and revealed the famous miraculous fountain. But is the young Bernadette credible? From the beginning, the Church and the police sought to demystify this real phenomenon.

However, very quickly, the cures seem to multiply. Tuberculosis, blindness, broken bones that heal themselves... The most spectacular events confound Europe's greatest physicians, in a century where science nevertheless competes with faith. So, how can we explain the inexplicable? Experts have tried to unravel the mystery of Lourdes by exploring possibilities such as hypnosis, hysteria, and crowd magnetism. Religious people have also mobilized, setting up an exclusive medical practice. It is a unique case, among all religions, with the aim of proclaiming only the absolutely incontestable cases.

Thanks to evocations, interviews with the greatest experts, including the current President of the Lourdes Medical Bureau, this is the story of an enigma that has endured over 150 years, and proves, as never before, the power of faith.