Having asked my Catholic husband on many an occasion what the Grotto not far from our nearest village represents and getting a shrug of the shoulders I now feel fully in possession of the facts. Having grown up in England these Marian apparition Grottos hold a strange kind of magic and I like observing the one in our parish. Thanks Paul.
I enjoyed rereading your presentation of your well journey this morning, Paul, as I had forgotten much that appeared in it.
I am sure that the apparitions of Mary are a trial, and an embarrassment to the official representatives of a Church which suffers from the same problems inherent in bureaucracy that plague all of our formal institutions right now, religious or political. The Catholic Church would like the apparitions to go away, to be able to conduct business as usual INSIDE THE CHURCHES, and under a roof.
How much tends to get lost under the imperative to organize our spiritual experience...
But how to keep it alive, and pass it on without organisation (to the extent that any spiritual experience can be passed on...) ?
Right now I am going through Euripides' "The Bacchae" with a fine toothed comb, as we say. It is about non believers, water miraculously appearing in the mountains when the women claw at the ground, crazy women hunting, and tearing animals and people to pieces sometimes, with no roof over their heads. An untamed approach to an untamed religious experience with Dionysos who is not a sympathetic figure at all, contrary to Jesus, who is kind and forgiving (but... not always, I seem to remember). "The Bacchae" explores what happens to people who can't seem to muster belief, and it is not pretty.
Mary is at the opposite end of the spectrum from the Bacchae. Refreshing, and comforting.
Economically speaking, is the overrepresentation of young women among witnesses of apparitions driven by supply (young women being more susceptible) or by demand (we like our apparitions being delivered by young women)?
I have to say, Our Lady had a powerful role in bringing me to the faith from atheism. One I never expected or could have predicted. Quite strange how it all shakes out, isn't it?
While you're in Donegal, have you checked out Doon Well and the well associated with St Patrick beside Grianan Fort? There are many more, as I'm sure you know.
Today is the feast day of St. Gobnata of Ballyvourney, thought there may be a chance that her well would be featured today but hopefully you had the chance to visit there as well - she is my wife’s patron Saint and the visit we had to it was pretty meaningful for both of us. Thank you for these writings Paul, Saint Gobnata pray for us!
I look forward to this too. I live not far from Kilgobnet in Kerry and my mother-in-law was telling me just the other day that the ruins of her church can still be found in the fields not far from my sister-in-laws house. I will definitely be going for a wander to find it soon.
Hello from across the pond! I had to sign up as a paid member after reading today’s holy well and the Marian talk. Today is the feast of Saint Bernadette, my confirmation name. I only became a huge fan of Mary in my later years. She became a stronger woman as I became a stronger woman. Love these Sunday journeys
I grew up in Conyers GA and back in the 90's a lady named Nancy Fowler claimed to have visions of Mary and was told about future events and so forth. It was a huge deal here. Different times of the year our town would have 10's of thousands people coming to their farm to hear what she had to say. Alot of money was made off of it. It was eventually stopped but I dont the details. Their was a saying we had " come to Conyers, Eat Drink and See Mary ".
It is my understanding that Catholics (like me) and Orthodox agree that the best way to discern whether an apparition, or any phenomenon at all, is from God or the Father of All Lies is to look at the fruits. I take it that the devil has proved to be rather good at the long con now and then, but still, I find it very hard to believe that demonic delusions would incite people to pray and crank up their devotion, as has been the case with the apparitions recognised by the Church. After all, there's no shortage of hoaxes and 'enlightened ones' that have been properly discredited.
I believe the Marian apparitions to be true, is what I'm saying. Of course, I'd much rather use them as an inspiration for my own faith than to try to bash other denominations over the head with them or to convince myself that Catholics are more righteous.
But don't a lot of Protestants employ worship styles and preaching styles that are meant to excite the emotions, which in turn "incite people to pray and crank up their devotion?" I don't know if that is the best yardstick for deciding if something is from God. Some kinds of prayer and devotion are superficial and short-lived.
Well said. Paul, with all due respect, this obvious and very public disdain you have for Catholicism is something many of us are praying you will grow up and transcend. What’s the point? To even suggest that the Church will crumble from within is to deny the Rock built on Peter, who, yes, was a fool, a denier, a doubter, a human, but also Jesus called him a ROCK and he was a builder and a connector and a Saint. I look forward to the day you abandon this ridiculous Orthodox supremacy stuff and chooses to join in humbled worship of the Great Connector along with the rest of God’s children. To not see The Machine at work in this Easterners-know-best POV is an oversight I pray you overcome sooner than later.
Please don't be so touchy. I live in Ireland and many of my friends are Catholics. Most of them are better Christians than me.
I don't believe in 'Orthodox supremacy', or in any kind of supremacy at all. That's one of the reasons I'm not Catholic. I do believe that the Eastern approach to the faith is better, and truer, than the Roman approach, which is why I'm Orthodox. I expect you would say the same from the opposite perspective. This does not translate into 'disdain.' Just disagreement. And sometimes a few mischievous little jokes which, living in Ireland, I give myself permission to make.
I am not the one responsible for the theories about the third secret of Fatima, nor for concerns about the Roman church collapsing. From what I've seen, it's Catholics spreading that sort of rumour. I would have a hard time expressing much more disdain for the current church than many online Catholic 'trads' at the moment, after all.
I do hope the Western church will come through its current travails. But I also have a sense of humour, and sometimes it is good to exercise it.
Have all the fun you want. It’s just that there’s a clear, larger pattern of flippant “fun” you’re having at the expense of many sincere Catholics — and by extension all non-Orthodox — that I felt worth pointing out, with all due respect. I wasn’t drawn to Catholicism because it was “better” than the Eastern approach, even if there are MANY ways I would agree that it holds an edge on its Western counterpart. I was drawn into it by the Spirit, upon whose wisdom I depend with increasing challenge but also equal parts joy. I didn’t “choose” it at all. It wasn’t a matter of rational or logical comparison-making either, just a matter of where “home” was. Obviously you feel at “home” in the Orthodox tradition. But, as your writing clearly exhibits, you long, as we all fundamentally do whether we realize it or not, for unification, a transcendence of differences, certainly of the elimination of the need to nit-pickily point out each other’s faults ad nauseum.
This is how, and what, I write. If it offends you I apologise for the offence. It's not intentional. But the writing will continue, and I am not going to second guess anyone's reactions. These are mine.
As I said: there is no need to be touchy. I know the Catholic church is in turmoil at present, but as it happens I have made no comments at all on that here, and I don't intend to. It's not my business. I am not picking out anyone's faults. But I will speak my mind. It's my job.
I’m not offended and never said i was — I’ve simply offered a criticism. You’re a public figure, disseminating these words to tens of thousands of people. There’s bound to be a few idiots among us, missing the point, getting it all wrong. I’ll be that guy today if that’s what you think of me. I’m convinced this would go over much better at a pub, but here we are typing letters on a keyboard. I frigging LOVE your writing — it has deeply inspired me many times. I’m not here to be a nuisance. I live under the poverty line but pay to subscribe to this channel. I pray you continue to feel inspired to write. You have a true gift. For better or worse, or neither, this is how, and what, I have to offer in terms of criticism today. It’s part of a larger pattern I’ve noticed for a while. I offer it to you as a brother. We’ll be picking off clinging remnants of The Machine that we missed in the initial turning away from it for the rest of our lives. I’m just pointing to one piece in particular for you today. We’re mirrors for each other. If this criticism offends you, I too apologise. I don’t mean any harm.
Well thanks, you're very kind and hopefully neither of us is offended. I'll bear in mind what you say. As ever - you are right here - this conversation would be a lot better (and more useful) in the actual, real world. I don't suppose either of wants to sow division. There is fine line between that and speaking the truth as you see it, and it is not always easy to discern.
The Vatican’s skepticism is understandable as frauds of course use religion for their own purposes. That said, I think you would benefit from a deeper study of Lourdes. It is a place of love in action. I am grateful God sent Mary to Bernadette, “ the little broom.”
A lesser-known Marian apparition occurred in Zeitoun, Egypt in the late 1960's, at the site of a Coptic Orthodox church. The apparitions lasted three years and were witnessed by hundreds of thousands of people, Christian, Muslim and atheists alike. There are even pictures of it, although I'm not sure they have been authenticated. The hierarchy of the Coptic church did an investigation and declared the apparitions authentic. It is a really fascinating case, because apparitions are not usually associated with Muslim countries. I think the definitive study of the Zeitoun apparitions is yet to be written.
Jim, Portugal was a Moorish territory in the 8th - 9th centuries. The location of perhaps the most famous of Marian apparitions happened in a little village bearing the name of Mohammed's daughter, Fatima. Mary selects her locations for a reason.
I totally understand the derision of non-Christians regarding miracles and Marian apparitions in general, and the Fatima visitations in particular. As for Christians, if they believe Jesus healed the sick and restored sight to the blind, it’s not a stretch at all to believe in miracles. Perhaps the eyewitness accounts that Jesus rose from the dead, walked through walls and ascended into heaven was just a massive fraud and the greatest hoax of two millennia. The apostles, with the exception of John, sure did go to extremes selling the con with their beheadings, crucifixions and other gruesome deaths.
What strikes me most deeply about the Fatima visitations is the moral courage of the three peasant children, Francisco, Jacinta and Lucia (ages 10, 9 and 7). They reported messages from Mary far beyond their education, and were persecuted and harassed by family members, Church and state authorities, and never wavered or retracted what they described and said. Francisco was so shaken by the glimpse of hell, he spent most of the rest of his young life kneeling before the Blessed Sacrament, a place where he found peace and comfort from Jesus. Francisco and Jacinta are canonized saints.
Sr. Lucia was treated horribly her entire life by church authorities, silenced and cloistered for years. The source of most of the controversy of Fatima in the Church revolves around the content of the Third Secret. Over fifty years ago, Sr. Lucia said it would involve a battle to destroy the family. Prophetic? Or just a lucky guess?
I recently heard it suggested from a well known former Anglican bishop now Catholic convert that the Protestants should return the Cathedrals, land, art, they took over from the Catholic church during the reformation and Henry the 8th. Reparations to the Catholics(what a notion!) that built these beautiful places....worth multi- billions. He claims the Protestants don't remotely fill these spaces or know how to be in them( could it be the lack of Mary?) and are turning them into museums , cafes, cultural centers.. even golf courses! for the revenue. Maybe Theotokis is what is needed. I love hearing the Irish ,despite the crushing secularization everywhere hold on to her even in a folk kitsch way. Maybe that way it seems less threatening to the elite establishment who don't remotely understand her power?..
I'm not a Catholic, but I rather favour this idea. They couldn't do much worse than the mess that the CofE has made of so many of our classic English cathedrals. For example:
I recall 30+yrs ago walking thru Salisbury Cathedral with my then Ivy league boyfriend . I mentioned to him this was a Catholic Cathedral, he shook his head not understanding and sure he was correct about it being built by the church of England (but not in the 1200's!). I said did you study the reformation at your school?
I see you can book events there too...maybe a Rave party if they catch on?
..I have since learned from a Benedictine nun who went to Harvard, that Harvard was were she became an atheist (later converted).. cynicism was considered very smart and progressive...all the best professors were of this thinking.
Well done, Paul! Today Feb 11 is the feast of the apparition of Our Lady of Lourdes.
I recommend reading Franz Werfel’s book, “The Song of Bernadette”. Werfel was stuck in Lourdes with his wife, Alma Mahler (widow of Gustav Mahler), during WWII while waiting to cross into Spain and then Portugal. Werfel was a famous Jewish playwright, poet, and novelist. His name was high up on the Nazis’ death list. He vowed to write about the apparitions in Lourdes if he and his wife would make it safely to America. This promise he fulfilled when he arrived in the US.
The book was made into an award-winning move in 1943. I am surprised at how Catholic this book is, given that Werfel is Jewish. I found out later in another Werfel book called “Between Heaven and Earth” that Werfel’s nanny, a Czech woman named Barbara, took him to Sunday Mass when he was young, and taught him a lot about the Catholic faith. He had also gone to a Catholic school for boys in Prague.
Maybe there was an epidemic of Catholic nannies for Jewish children... Sigmund Freud, another Jewish man, was very much influenced by his Catholic nanny, and there must have been many others.
Catholic nannies in the Jewish families, Black nannies for the white plantation owners' children... one could say that the Lord works in mysterious ways.
I loved the film "The Song of Bernadette", with Debbie Reynolds, as I remember. Music plays a big part in it, if I'm thinking of the right film.
Thank you for correcting me. I think that I must have confused the movie with a movie with Debbie Reynolds in it : "The Singing Nun" (unless I'm mixing up several movies here...) ? But I remember Jennifer Jones now.
In America 120 years ago, Irish nannies were known generically as "bridgets", as in "I recently hired a bridget to take care of the twins." I am sure a lot of them ended up working in non-Catholic homes.
Removed because this comment has already been made, word-for-word, above.
Great reading. I was chuckling throughout. So nice that faith can be fun too.
Having asked my Catholic husband on many an occasion what the Grotto not far from our nearest village represents and getting a shrug of the shoulders I now feel fully in possession of the facts. Having grown up in England these Marian apparition Grottos hold a strange kind of magic and I like observing the one in our parish. Thanks Paul.
I enjoyed rereading your presentation of your well journey this morning, Paul, as I had forgotten much that appeared in it.
I am sure that the apparitions of Mary are a trial, and an embarrassment to the official representatives of a Church which suffers from the same problems inherent in bureaucracy that plague all of our formal institutions right now, religious or political. The Catholic Church would like the apparitions to go away, to be able to conduct business as usual INSIDE THE CHURCHES, and under a roof.
How much tends to get lost under the imperative to organize our spiritual experience...
But how to keep it alive, and pass it on without organisation (to the extent that any spiritual experience can be passed on...) ?
Right now I am going through Euripides' "The Bacchae" with a fine toothed comb, as we say. It is about non believers, water miraculously appearing in the mountains when the women claw at the ground, crazy women hunting, and tearing animals and people to pieces sometimes, with no roof over their heads. An untamed approach to an untamed religious experience with Dionysos who is not a sympathetic figure at all, contrary to Jesus, who is kind and forgiving (but... not always, I seem to remember). "The Bacchae" explores what happens to people who can't seem to muster belief, and it is not pretty.
Mary is at the opposite end of the spectrum from the Bacchae. Refreshing, and comforting.
Economically speaking, is the overrepresentation of young women among witnesses of apparitions driven by supply (young women being more susceptible) or by demand (we like our apparitions being delivered by young women)?
Better than ugly old men... 😀
A lovely post and particularly lovely photos.
I have to say, Our Lady had a powerful role in bringing me to the faith from atheism. One I never expected or could have predicted. Quite strange how it all shakes out, isn't it?
While you're in Donegal, have you checked out Doon Well and the well associated with St Patrick beside Grianan Fort? There are many more, as I'm sure you know.
Today is the feast day of St. Gobnata of Ballyvourney, thought there may be a chance that her well would be featured today but hopefully you had the chance to visit there as well - she is my wife’s patron Saint and the visit we had to it was pretty meaningful for both of us. Thank you for these writings Paul, Saint Gobnata pray for us!
St Gobnait will be along in my Wild Saints series later in the year. Watch this space - and happy name day to your wife.
I look forward to this too. I live not far from Kilgobnet in Kerry and my mother-in-law was telling me just the other day that the ruins of her church can still be found in the fields not far from my sister-in-laws house. I will definitely be going for a wander to find it soon.
Hello from across the pond! I had to sign up as a paid member after reading today’s holy well and the Marian talk. Today is the feast of Saint Bernadette, my confirmation name. I only became a huge fan of Mary in my later years. She became a stronger woman as I became a stronger woman. Love these Sunday journeys
I grew up in Conyers GA and back in the 90's a lady named Nancy Fowler claimed to have visions of Mary and was told about future events and so forth. It was a huge deal here. Different times of the year our town would have 10's of thousands people coming to their farm to hear what she had to say. Alot of money was made off of it. It was eventually stopped but I dont the details. Their was a saying we had " come to Conyers, Eat Drink and See Mary ".
It is my understanding that Catholics (like me) and Orthodox agree that the best way to discern whether an apparition, or any phenomenon at all, is from God or the Father of All Lies is to look at the fruits. I take it that the devil has proved to be rather good at the long con now and then, but still, I find it very hard to believe that demonic delusions would incite people to pray and crank up their devotion, as has been the case with the apparitions recognised by the Church. After all, there's no shortage of hoaxes and 'enlightened ones' that have been properly discredited.
I believe the Marian apparitions to be true, is what I'm saying. Of course, I'd much rather use them as an inspiration for my own faith than to try to bash other denominations over the head with them or to convince myself that Catholics are more righteous.
Glory to God.
But don't a lot of Protestants employ worship styles and preaching styles that are meant to excite the emotions, which in turn "incite people to pray and crank up their devotion?" I don't know if that is the best yardstick for deciding if something is from God. Some kinds of prayer and devotion are superficial and short-lived.
Well said. Paul, with all due respect, this obvious and very public disdain you have for Catholicism is something many of us are praying you will grow up and transcend. What’s the point? To even suggest that the Church will crumble from within is to deny the Rock built on Peter, who, yes, was a fool, a denier, a doubter, a human, but also Jesus called him a ROCK and he was a builder and a connector and a Saint. I look forward to the day you abandon this ridiculous Orthodox supremacy stuff and chooses to join in humbled worship of the Great Connector along with the rest of God’s children. To not see The Machine at work in this Easterners-know-best POV is an oversight I pray you overcome sooner than later.
Please don't be so touchy. I live in Ireland and many of my friends are Catholics. Most of them are better Christians than me.
I don't believe in 'Orthodox supremacy', or in any kind of supremacy at all. That's one of the reasons I'm not Catholic. I do believe that the Eastern approach to the faith is better, and truer, than the Roman approach, which is why I'm Orthodox. I expect you would say the same from the opposite perspective. This does not translate into 'disdain.' Just disagreement. And sometimes a few mischievous little jokes which, living in Ireland, I give myself permission to make.
I am not the one responsible for the theories about the third secret of Fatima, nor for concerns about the Roman church collapsing. From what I've seen, it's Catholics spreading that sort of rumour. I would have a hard time expressing much more disdain for the current church than many online Catholic 'trads' at the moment, after all.
I do hope the Western church will come through its current travails. But I also have a sense of humour, and sometimes it is good to exercise it.
Have all the fun you want. It’s just that there’s a clear, larger pattern of flippant “fun” you’re having at the expense of many sincere Catholics — and by extension all non-Orthodox — that I felt worth pointing out, with all due respect. I wasn’t drawn to Catholicism because it was “better” than the Eastern approach, even if there are MANY ways I would agree that it holds an edge on its Western counterpart. I was drawn into it by the Spirit, upon whose wisdom I depend with increasing challenge but also equal parts joy. I didn’t “choose” it at all. It wasn’t a matter of rational or logical comparison-making either, just a matter of where “home” was. Obviously you feel at “home” in the Orthodox tradition. But, as your writing clearly exhibits, you long, as we all fundamentally do whether we realize it or not, for unification, a transcendence of differences, certainly of the elimination of the need to nit-pickily point out each other’s faults ad nauseum.
I too was drawn in by the Spirit.
This is how, and what, I write. If it offends you I apologise for the offence. It's not intentional. But the writing will continue, and I am not going to second guess anyone's reactions. These are mine.
As I said: there is no need to be touchy. I know the Catholic church is in turmoil at present, but as it happens I have made no comments at all on that here, and I don't intend to. It's not my business. I am not picking out anyone's faults. But I will speak my mind. It's my job.
I’m not offended and never said i was — I’ve simply offered a criticism. You’re a public figure, disseminating these words to tens of thousands of people. There’s bound to be a few idiots among us, missing the point, getting it all wrong. I’ll be that guy today if that’s what you think of me. I’m convinced this would go over much better at a pub, but here we are typing letters on a keyboard. I frigging LOVE your writing — it has deeply inspired me many times. I’m not here to be a nuisance. I live under the poverty line but pay to subscribe to this channel. I pray you continue to feel inspired to write. You have a true gift. For better or worse, or neither, this is how, and what, I have to offer in terms of criticism today. It’s part of a larger pattern I’ve noticed for a while. I offer it to you as a brother. We’ll be picking off clinging remnants of The Machine that we missed in the initial turning away from it for the rest of our lives. I’m just pointing to one piece in particular for you today. We’re mirrors for each other. If this criticism offends you, I too apologise. I don’t mean any harm.
Well thanks, you're very kind and hopefully neither of us is offended. I'll bear in mind what you say. As ever - you are right here - this conversation would be a lot better (and more useful) in the actual, real world. I don't suppose either of wants to sow division. There is fine line between that and speaking the truth as you see it, and it is not always easy to discern.
Also, humour does not always translate well.
And I hope you all hiked slieve league afterwards! What a beautiful beautiful place
The Vatican’s skepticism is understandable as frauds of course use religion for their own purposes. That said, I think you would benefit from a deeper study of Lourdes. It is a place of love in action. I am grateful God sent Mary to Bernadette, “ the little broom.”
A lesser-known Marian apparition occurred in Zeitoun, Egypt in the late 1960's, at the site of a Coptic Orthodox church. The apparitions lasted three years and were witnessed by hundreds of thousands of people, Christian, Muslim and atheists alike. There are even pictures of it, although I'm not sure they have been authenticated. The hierarchy of the Coptic church did an investigation and declared the apparitions authentic. It is a really fascinating case, because apparitions are not usually associated with Muslim countries. I think the definitive study of the Zeitoun apparitions is yet to be written.
Can you recommend any links that pertain to the Zeitoun apparition ?
Wikipedia has a page on Zeitoun with some articles linked.
Jim, Portugal was a Moorish territory in the 8th - 9th centuries. The location of perhaps the most famous of Marian apparitions happened in a little village bearing the name of Mohammed's daughter, Fatima. Mary selects her locations for a reason.
A very interesting point, and one that is neglected in all the controversies and speculation about Our Lady of Fatima.
Thanks, hogtowner.
Some thoughts about the controversies….
I totally understand the derision of non-Christians regarding miracles and Marian apparitions in general, and the Fatima visitations in particular. As for Christians, if they believe Jesus healed the sick and restored sight to the blind, it’s not a stretch at all to believe in miracles. Perhaps the eyewitness accounts that Jesus rose from the dead, walked through walls and ascended into heaven was just a massive fraud and the greatest hoax of two millennia. The apostles, with the exception of John, sure did go to extremes selling the con with their beheadings, crucifixions and other gruesome deaths.
What strikes me most deeply about the Fatima visitations is the moral courage of the three peasant children, Francisco, Jacinta and Lucia (ages 10, 9 and 7). They reported messages from Mary far beyond their education, and were persecuted and harassed by family members, Church and state authorities, and never wavered or retracted what they described and said. Francisco was so shaken by the glimpse of hell, he spent most of the rest of his young life kneeling before the Blessed Sacrament, a place where he found peace and comfort from Jesus. Francisco and Jacinta are canonized saints.
Sr. Lucia was treated horribly her entire life by church authorities, silenced and cloistered for years. The source of most of the controversy of Fatima in the Church revolves around the content of the Third Secret. Over fifty years ago, Sr. Lucia said it would involve a battle to destroy the family. Prophetic? Or just a lucky guess?
I recently heard it suggested from a well known former Anglican bishop now Catholic convert that the Protestants should return the Cathedrals, land, art, they took over from the Catholic church during the reformation and Henry the 8th. Reparations to the Catholics(what a notion!) that built these beautiful places....worth multi- billions. He claims the Protestants don't remotely fill these spaces or know how to be in them( could it be the lack of Mary?) and are turning them into museums , cafes, cultural centers.. even golf courses! for the revenue. Maybe Theotokis is what is needed. I love hearing the Irish ,despite the crushing secularization everywhere hold on to her even in a folk kitsch way. Maybe that way it seems less threatening to the elite establishment who don't remotely understand her power?..
I'm not a Catholic, but I rather favour this idea. They couldn't do much worse than the mess that the CofE has made of so many of our classic English cathedrals. For example:
https://www.euronews.com/culture/2024/02/09/rave-in-the-nave-canterbury-cathedral-hosts-silent-disco
I recall 30+yrs ago walking thru Salisbury Cathedral with my then Ivy league boyfriend . I mentioned to him this was a Catholic Cathedral, he shook his head not understanding and sure he was correct about it being built by the church of England (but not in the 1200's!). I said did you study the reformation at your school?
I see you can book events there too...maybe a Rave party if they catch on?
..I have since learned from a Benedictine nun who went to Harvard, that Harvard was were she became an atheist (later converted).. cynicism was considered very smart and progressive...all the best professors were of this thinking.
Well done, Paul! Today Feb 11 is the feast of the apparition of Our Lady of Lourdes.
I recommend reading Franz Werfel’s book, “The Song of Bernadette”. Werfel was stuck in Lourdes with his wife, Alma Mahler (widow of Gustav Mahler), during WWII while waiting to cross into Spain and then Portugal. Werfel was a famous Jewish playwright, poet, and novelist. His name was high up on the Nazis’ death list. He vowed to write about the apparitions in Lourdes if he and his wife would make it safely to America. This promise he fulfilled when he arrived in the US.
The book was made into an award-winning move in 1943. I am surprised at how Catholic this book is, given that Werfel is Jewish. I found out later in another Werfel book called “Between Heaven and Earth” that Werfel’s nanny, a Czech woman named Barbara, took him to Sunday Mass when he was young, and taught him a lot about the Catholic faith. He had also gone to a Catholic school for boys in Prague.
Maybe there was an epidemic of Catholic nannies for Jewish children... Sigmund Freud, another Jewish man, was very much influenced by his Catholic nanny, and there must have been many others.
Catholic nannies in the Jewish families, Black nannies for the white plantation owners' children... one could say that the Lord works in mysterious ways.
I loved the film "The Song of Bernadette", with Debbie Reynolds, as I remember. Music plays a big part in it, if I'm thinking of the right film.
Thanks for the recommendation, Esme.
Bernadette was played by Jennifer Jones, an unknown actress at that time. She won the best actress award for her portrayal of Bernadette.
Thank you for correcting me. I think that I must have confused the movie with a movie with Debbie Reynolds in it : "The Singing Nun" (unless I'm mixing up several movies here...) ? But I remember Jennifer Jones now.
In America 120 years ago, Irish nannies were known generically as "bridgets", as in "I recently hired a bridget to take care of the twins." I am sure a lot of them ended up working in non-Catholic homes.
Almost as good as going to Cathechism, right ? Not everything needs be done... officially.