Our Lady of La Salette Chapter Two After the Apparition

Our Lady of La Salette: A Mother Weeps for Children is available on Amazon.

 

Chapter Two
After the Apparition

When Maximin returned to Selme’s home, he told his employer what had happened. Selme decided to question Melanie; her story agreed with the boy’s version. It was Grandmother Pra at Melanie’s home who first identified the “Beautiful Lady” as the Blessed Virgin. The adults quickly decided that the children needed to share the story with Fr. Jacques Perrin who was in charge of the parish of La Salette.

The next day, the children set off early in the morning to visit with Fr. Perrin. En route, they encountered a constable who questioned them about their errand. The constable responded with derisive laughter, but decided this news was something the mayor needed to hear.

Meanwhile, the children reached the rectory where the door was answered by the housekeeper, Françoise. She took her job as gatekeeper for the priest seriously and was not going to allow the priest to be disturbed. Faced with no other choice, the children shared their story with her. Little did they know that Fr. Perrin was in the next room, listening intently to all that they said. Like the Beautiful Lady herself, Fr. Perrin responded to the children’s recounting of her message with tears.  

It was time for Maximin to return home to his father now that his term of employment was completed. Selme escorted him home. Selme found Giraud at the local tavern, where he explained to Maximin’s father what had happened. Giraud’s fellow patrons were quick to poke fun at him and this pious matter his son seemed to be caught up in.

For his part, Maximin did not bother staying home with his stepmother; instead he rushed to see his grandmother. He knew that she would be happy to see him after his time away. When she asked how his time had been, he retold all that happened. His grandmother had never heard the boy tell such a story. It was so out of character for Maximin that she knew that he must be telling the truth. How fortunate that her grandson had been so blessed! She quickly shared the news with her friends. They rushed to see Maximin and he was forced to retell the story over and over.

Exhausted by the day’s events, Maximin went home and went to sleep, only to be rudely awakened by his angry drunk father pulling him out of bed. His father demanded that Maximin explain what all this foolishness was about. The weary Maximin began once more to tell of the Beautiful Lady and her message. As Maximin began to share the first words of the Lady’s message, Giraud was flabbergasted. How could his ignorant son know such things? He had never been able to learn much of anything. It was too much for his drunken mind to comprehend. He sent everyone back to bed. Perhaps by the next day all would be forgotten.

After the children left the rectory at La Salette and Maximin had departed to go home, Melanie decided to go to Mass. She very rarely attended Mass, but after hearing the Lady’s message, it seemed important to go. Much to her surprise, Fr. Perrin shared the story of all that had happened to her and Maximin from the pulpit. His words were confused. He spoke through tears. The parishioners could barely make out what he was saying, much less understand it. But Melanie did, and so did the mayor who also happened to be sitting in the congregation.

Mayor Peytard had heard the unbelievable tale from the constable. He had quickly dismissed the story as a childish prank not to be given any credence. What was the good priest doing sharing this story from the pulpit? Even if, by some miracle, the story was true, the mayor knew that this was not how the Church worked. The matter needed careful investigation before any sort of pronouncement was made. The other people in the pews may have been confused at the moment, but they would soon understand. The mayor could only envision the uproar that was about to take over his quiet community. He had to put a stop to this foolishness before the matter got out of hand.

Melanie ran home after Mass, eager to escape to the peace of Ablandins, but her peace would be short-lived. Mayor Peytard headed to her home that afternoon. After sharing some small talk with Baptiste Pra, he began to question Melanie, asking her to share what had happened on the mountain. Mayor Peytard was determined to catch the girl in a lie. He deliberately contradicted her and questioned her in multiple ways, hoping to entrap her. He threatened her, telling her she would be a laughing-stock among her friends. When that didn’t work, he said that if she did not deny the story, he would have her thrown into jail. She still remained firm. Finally he offered her three months wages to keep quiet. It was tempting to the impoverished child. What a blessing that money would be for her family! But, still she refused, telling the mayor, “You could give me this whole house full of crowns, and still you would not stop me from saying what I have seen and heard.”[i]

Having witnessed this whole encounter, Baptiste Pra decided that the story of the vision was worth writing down. This was most unusual in this time and place. Pra struggled with both writing and spelling, but he recorded all that had happened for the world to know.

Having struck out with Melanie, Mayor Peytard decided his next target would be Maximin. Perhaps he could be more successful with the young boy. The mayor arrived at the Giraud home early Monday morning. This time, the mayor didn’t even pretend to be kind. He immediately began to threaten Maximin with prison if he did not recant the story. The boy was as faithful to his story as Melanie had been. The mayor soon realized he was getting nowhere with his tactics. Instead, he insisted that he and Melanie both join him the following Sunday at the place where the vision was alleged to have taken place. Then, they would get to the bottom of this nonsense and dispense of this story once and for all.

On Saturday, September 26^th, Melanie visited Corps to see her father, a man who was as eager to believe the story of the apparition as Giraud had been. Fr. Mélin was the parish priest of Corps as well as the archpriest of that area (the bishop’s representative). While no one had spoken to him directly of the apparition, he had heard of it and was eager to speak to both Melanie and Maximin. When he noticed that Melanie was in town, he summoned both children to come and see him.

He interviewed the children separately and then together, cross-examining them. He kept a stoic appearance, offering no indication of his thoughts on the matter. He demanded that the children accompany him on Monday the 28^th on a visit to the mountain. This would mean a difficult and long journey for the children two days in a row as they were already obligated to visit the mountain the following day with the mayor, but the children offered no objection. They did as they were told.

Indeed, the children were happy to once again be in the place of the apparition when they went with the mayor. They eagerly demonstrated where everything happened. The mayor once again tried a show of force, hoping to put an end to the story. A constable had accompanied the group; he produced a rope and threatened to tie up Maximin and drag him to prison. He still would not deny the story. The mayor soon realized the children were not pretending. Whether it was real or not, the children believed that they had witnessed a vision.

The following day the children repeated the journey with Fr. Mélin and five other people brought along to be objective observers. Melanie and Maximin once again retold the story, pointing out all the important places. The priest soon became convinced that the children were telling the truth but he said nothing. Before they left, one member of the party suggested that they pray. Fr. Mélin agreed and the group knelt and said the rosary. They also noticed that the spring, which was usually dried out at that time of year, was now flowing freely. Fr. Mélin took an empty wine bottle and filled it with water from the spring.

Fr. Mélin was now convinced of the authenticity of the apparition but kept silent. His job was not to endorse the apparition, but rather to report what had happened to the bishop.

Fr. Mélin had decided to give some of the water from the spring to one of his parishioners who had been ill for a long time. Mme. Anglot began a novena to Our Lady and drank of the water for nine days. She was unable to eat anything else but was able to take the water without difficulty. On the ninth day, she was able to get out of bed and eat heartily. Fr. Mélin refused to call it a miracle, but did admit the whole matter was extraordinary. It was most definitely time to write to the bishop and put the matter into his capable hands.

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[i] Kennedy, 48.

Our Lady of La Salette: A Mother Weeps for Children is available on Amazon. 

Our Lady of La Salette Chapter One The Apparition

 Our Lady of La Salette: A Mother Weeps for Her Children is Available on Amazon 

Chapter One
The Apparition

In 1846, the people of the small town of Corps, located in the French Alps, had largely forgotten God. Sunday Mass drew a small handful of people; most people treated Sunday as a day like any other. Both children and adults swore and cussed. There was no fasting and abstinence, even during Lent.

Maximin Giraud was 11 years old, small for his age but healthy. His father, Germain Giraud, was a wheelwright and carpenter who drank heavily. Maximin’s mother had died, but his father had remarried. An active child, Maximin’s “attention never stayed fixed for long; he could not concentrate; he darted about ceaselessly and so did his mind.”[i] This description leads one to believe that if he were a child today, Maximin might be diagnosed with ADHD. He had never been to school and could barely recite the Our Father and Hail Mary. His father took Maximin to the café where he taught him how to smoke and drink. For the most part, Maximin “roamed the town at will . . . his mongrel dog Loulou tagging at his heels . . . He collected dung along the heavily travelled highway, or he kept an eye on the family’s goat and ewe.”[ii]

On September 13, 1846, Pierre Selme made his way to Corps. He was a farmer from La Salette, a parish with a few hamlets. He was in search of a child to temporarily watch over his four cows. Maximin was hired to go for a week. His father negotiated the terms. Maximin would be paid as well as receive butter and cheese for his work.

Melanie Mathieu, age 14, was also from Corps, but she and Maximin had never met. One of eight poor children, she begged as a small child before being hired out when she was seven or eight years old to help care for babies. When she was a bit older, she worked as farm help. By 1846, she was considered a professional herder and was employed by Baptiste Pra. She was undersize, quiet, and fearful. Like Maximin, she knew her Our Father and Hail Mary, but she also knew some small bits of catechism that her mother had tried to teach her. She also had a basic concept of saints. Yet, she had only been to church a few times in her life and had never made her first communion; most Sundays she could be found tending her cows just as she did every other day.

Maximin and Melanie met on September 17, 1846 while tending their animals. Two days later, they would experience the apparition that would change their lives forever. It was noon on September 19^th. The children were in a desolate mountain spot of La Salette, frequented only by the shepherds of the region. The Angelus bells rang and they took their animals to a place known as the “fountain”, a drinking place in a nearby ravine. After eating lunch, the children fell asleep. This was most unusual. Melanie usually always kept a watchful eye on the animals under her care. She woke up with a start an hour or two later. Where were the animals? She woke Maximin and the two searched for the cows. After they successfully found them, the children returned to the ravine to grab their knapsacks. It was then that Melanie first saw a great circle of light. She called Maximin to come see it.

The globe continued to grow until it was the size of a person. Melanie noticed a pair of hands first. In her words:

I had hardly noticed the pair of hands become increasingly white when, instantly, I saw arms and sleeves down to the elbows resting as it were upon the knees. I also saw part of the dress below the elbows – it was brilliant with pearls. I saw before us, upon the stones, as it were, a woman who sat there weeping, her face buried in her hands and her elbows resting upon her knees but I could not see her face nor the rest of her body because the brightness was a hindrance.[iii]

Both children carried shepherd sticks. Surprised by this vision, Melanie dropped hers, but Maximin held on to his, planning to use it as a weapon in case the woman did them any harm. Melanie feared it was a devil coming to get her. As soon as the woman began to speak, their fear left them. “They were fully reassured and felt, as it were, irresistibly attracted to this Lady.”[iv] The woman wept the entire time she spoke to them. Maximin wanted to help her. He believed that she was hurt by either her son or husband.

The Lady shared the following message with them:

“Come near, my children, be not afraid; I am here to tell you great news.

“If my people will not submit, I shall be forced to let fall the arm of my Son. It is so strong, so heavy, that I can no longer withhold it.

“For how long a time do I suffer for you! If I would not have my Son abandon you, I am compelled to pray to him without ceasing; and as to you, you take not heed of it.

“However much you pray, however much you do, you will never recompense the pains I have taken for you.

“Six days I have given you to labor, the seventh I have kept for myself; and they will not give it to me. It is this which makes the arm of my Son so heavy.

“Those who drive the carts cannot swear without introducing the name of my Son. These are the two things which make the arm of my Son so heavy.

“If the harvest is spoilt, it is all on your account. I gave you warning last year with the potatoes (‘pommes de terre’) but you did not heed it. On the contrary, when you found the potatoes spoilt, you swore, you took the name of my Son in vain. They will continue to decay, so that by Christmas there will be none left.”

The French expression “pommes de terre” intrigued Melanie. In the local dialect the word for potatoes was “las truffas”, whereas “pommes” for Melanie meant the fruit of the apple tree. Hence she instinctively turned towards Maximin to ask for an explanation, but the Beautiful Lady forestalled her.

“Ah, my children, you do not understand? Well, wait, I shall say it otherwise.”

And she continued her discourse in the local dialect of their region.

“If you have wheat, it is no good to sow it; all you sow the insects will eat, and what comes up will fall into dust when you thresh it.”

“There will come a great famine. Before the famine comes, the children under seven years of age will be seized with trembling and will die in the hands of those who hold them; the others will do penance by the famine. The walnuts will become bad, and the grapes will rot.”

Here the Beautiful Lady addressed the children separately, confiding to each a secret. She spoke first to Maximin, and though the little shepherd did not perceive that her tone of voice had changed, Melanie at his side could not hear a word, though she still saw the Beautiful Lady's lips moving. Then came Melanie's turn to receive her secret under like conditions. Both secrets were given in French.

Again addressing the two children in the idiom familiar to them, the Lady continued: “If they are converted, the stones and rocks will change into mounds of wheat, and the potatoes will be self-sown in the land.

“Do you say your prayers well, my children?” she asked the shepherds. Both answered with complete frankness: “Not very well, Madam.”

“Ah, my children”, she exhorted them, “you must be sure to say them well morning and evening. When you cannot do better, say at least an Our Father and a Hail Mary; but when you have time, say more.”

“There are none who go to Mass except a few aged women. The rest work on Sunday all summer; then in the winter, when they know not what to do, they go to Mass only to mock at religion. During Lent, they go to the meat-market like dogs.”

“Have you never seen wheat that is spoilt, my children?” the Beautiful Lady then asked them. “No, Madam”, they replied.

 “But you, my child”, she insisted, addressing the little boy in particular, “you must surely have seen some once when you were at the farm of Coin with your father. (Coin was a hamlet near the town of Corps). The owner of the field told your father to go and see his ruined wheat. You went together. You took two or three ears of wheat into your hands and rubbed them, and they fell into dust. Then you continued home. When you were still half an hour's distance from Corps, your father gave you a piece of bread and said to you: ‘Here, my child, eat some bread this year at least; I don't know who will eat any next year, if the wheat goes on like that.’”

Confronted with such precise details, Maximin eagerly replied: “Oh yes, Madam, I remember now; just at this moment I did not remember.”

Then the Lady, again speaking French as at the beginning of her discourse and when giving the secrets, said to them: “Well, my children, you will make this known to all my people.”

Now she turned slightly to her left, passed in front of the children, crossed the brook Sezia, stepping on stones emerging from it, and when she was about ten feet from the opposite bank repeated her final request, without turning around or stopping: “Well, my children, you will make this well known to all my people.”[v]

The children found it hard to gaze directly at the apparition due to the brightness of the great light. As the Lady went up to heaven, she gazed earthward. Melanie’s eyes met hers. “She was no longer weeping but a profound sadness marked her features.”[vi]

The apparition lasted approximately half an hour, even though to the children the time passed quickly. There were other shepherds present on the mountain that day, but none of them saw the light of the apparition. Maximin’s dog was also unaffected by the apparition. Despite being a keen watchdog, Loulou slept peacefully through the whole experience a step or two behind the children, even as the light enveloped him. The children did not know who had visited them. Melanie thought she might be a great saint. They began to refer to her as the “Beautiful Lady”.

Melanie and Maximin heard the message more with their hearts than with their ears. At times, the Lady spoke in proper French, which neither child knew much of. At other times, she spoke in their local dialect. “They retained all of it perfectly, the French as well as the dialect, whether or not they understood everything.”[vii] For the rest of their lives, they would not forget.

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[i] Msgr. John S. Kennedy, Light on the Mountain: The Story of La Salette (New York: McMullen Books, 1953) 15.

[ii] Kennedy, 15.

[iii] Fr. Emile A. Ladouceur, M.S., The Vision of La Salette: The Children Speak, editor Fr. Ron Gagne, M.S. (Hartford: Missionaries of La Salette Corporation, 2016) 25.

[iv] Ladouceur, 31.

[v] “La Salette: The Message and Its Meaning”, https://www.lasalette.org/about-la-salette/apparition/the-story/705-the-message-of-la-salette.html

[vi] Ladouceur, 81.

[vii] Ladouceur, 67.

Our Lady of La Salette: A Mother Weeps for Her Children is Available on Amazon 

Our Lady of La Salette: A Mother Weeps for Her Children Introduction

I recently published a short book on Our Lady of La Salette. It is available in both paperback and Kindle, but really, what I want to do is share information about Our Lady of La Salette and her message with the world. While it would be wonderful if you'd buy the book, I'm going to share the text here on my blog over the next few days. The anniversary of the apparition of Our Lady of La Salette is coming up on September 19th and our world desperately needs her message. Please help share her message with others.

Introduction

Our Lady of La Salette was trying to get my attention.  It started in the days following the tragic fire at Notre Dame Cathedral in France. Someone posted on Facebook that there was a Marian apparition that had predicted this. Another person responded that it was Our Lady of La Salette. While I had heard of this title for the Blessed Mother, I knew nothing about it. Intrigued, I searched for her message and quickly found a terrifying apocalyptic prediction. I wondered why more wasn’t known about this approved apparition. Why wasn’t this common knowledge in Catholic circles the way Our Lady of Lourdes or Our Lady of Fatima are?

My parish library had three books on Our Lady of La Salette. I took out one that looked interesting and quickly read it. It offered information about the apparition that took place on September 19, 1846 but said nothing about the frightening secret I had read online. I was confused.

A few days letter, an article appeared in the National Catholic Register on Our Lady of La Salette and the site of the apparition in Corps, France.[i]  I went back to my parish library and took out the other two books as well as undertook a considerable amount of online research. While I had no hope of making a pilgrimage to France, I made plans to visit the National Shrine of Our Lady of La Salette in Attleboro, Massachusetts.

The more I learned, the more I realized that there was a story here – a message that our Blessed Mother wanted people to hear – a message that is just as relevant in our own day as it was in 1846. In this short book, I endeavor to weed out fact from fiction regarding this apparition and to share this important message from heaven. I trust that the Blessed Mother will help it get into the hands of those who need to hear it. 

Our Lady of La Salette, Pray for Us.

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[i] Mary Hansen, “Weeping Mother: Our Lady of La Salette Calls for Prayer and Repentance in the Alps”, National Catholic Register, May 12, 2019.

Our Lady of La Salette: A Mother Weeps for Her Children is available on Amazon. 

Join Pat Gohn and Me as We Discuss Forgiveness

Thanks so much to Pat Gohn for hosting me on her Among Women Podcast where we discuss my new book The Power of Forgiveness. Pat also offers a brief reflection from the brilliance of St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, whose feast day was this week.

The Power of Forgiveness is now available!

Look what came in the mail today! My author copies of The Power of Forgiveness. This is a short little booklet but it offers a great deal to think about and pray about. It offers reflections and suggestions based on lessons from Scripture and the Saints on how to forgive others.

When we pray the "Our Father" we ask God to forgive us the way we forgive those who trespass against us. Yet, that can be a difficult thing to do. This book can help you work and pray your way through that process.

The Power of Forgiveness can be ordered on Amazon at https://amzn.to/2KfEupg or through the Our Sunday Visitor website.