Here is a true story that took place in France in 1947, about 80 years ago. At that time, France was in grave danger. People stopped working—it was a general strike—they rose up in revolt, and began fighting in the streets. The country was on the brink of war, civil war…
L’Île Bouchard
But then, on December 8, something extraordinary happened! In a small village called L’Ile Bouchard, three little girls were on their way to school. It was early afternoon. Jacqueline, the oldest, was 12, her little sister Jeanne was 7, and their cousin Nicole was 10.
Suddenly, Jacqueline remembers that the nun who taught their class that morning had told them: “Today, December 8, is the Feast of the Immaculate Conception; we must honor the Virgin Mary in a special way, and also pray to her for France.”
Jacqueline tells her sister and cousin about this, and all three decide to go pray for a few moments before heading to school. They enter the village church, kneel before the altar of the Blessed Virgin, and begin to pray the Rosary.
A Bright Light
Suddenly, during the fourth “Hail Mary,” the girls saw a bright light! And in the midst of that light stood a beautiful Lady, accompanied by an angel. The girls let out a cry of admiration: “Oh, the Lady is so beautiful!” She was wearing a white dress with a blue sash, and a white veil revealed her long blonde hair. She is wonderful…
The girls are so impressed by this sudden apparition that they run out into the street to find other people. There, they find 15-year-old Sergine and her little sister Laura, and they bring them back with them into the church. Little Laura immediately sees the beautiful Lady and the angel. She is dazzled and overjoyed. But Sergine doesn’t see them—oh no, she doesn’t see anything…maybe because she’s too old… The girls kneel down and pray another decade of their Rosary. The beautiful Lady smiles at them, and the angel speaks to them; he tells them his name is Gabriel. And then, all of a sudden, both of them disappear, in a sort of dust of light.
The Beautiful Lady Speaks to the Children
Hurriedly, the girls leave the church and run so they won’t be late for school. When they arrive in the playground, they tell everything to their classmates, the principal, and also to the priest who is there. But he doesn’t believe them, and he replies to Jacqueline: “You must have seen things blurry through your big glasses… ”
So, quietly, Jacqueline and the three girls leave the school and return to the church. No sooner have they knelt down than the Beautiful Lady appears to them again, with the angel. And this time, the Lady speaks to them. In a very soft, clear voice, she says to them:
– Tell the little children to pray for France, which is in great need.
So the girls dared to ask the Lady a question:
– “Um, aren’t you our Heavenly Mother?”
– “Yes,” replied the Lady with a beautiful smile. “Of course I am your Heavenly Mother.” Then the girls realized that it was the Virgin Mary, the Mother of Jesus, who was there. Wow… what a joy!
We must pray fervently for France, which is in great danger…
The beautiful Lady extends her right hand and says:
– Children, give me your hand, one at a time.
And the Lady places a kiss on each of the four little hands. Then…she disappears, saying: – Come back tomorrow at 1 o’clock.
When the girls return home, they tell their families everything they have seen and heard. But…no one believes them, and they are even mocked. The next day, despite the mockery, they return to the church at 1 o’clock anyway.
The Virgin Mary and the angel soon appear to them. And the beautiful Lady says to them:
– Here, kiss the Cross on my Rosary.
Jacqueline and Nicole, standing on tiptoe, manage to reach it, but Jeanne and Laura are too small. So Jacqueline lifts them up, holding them at arm’s length, one after the other. It’s strange; she makes no effort to carry them, as if the little girls weighed nothing.
Then the Blessed Virgin invited them to make a majestic sign of the Cross with her, very slow and profound, like a true prayer. Then she said to them:
– My children, you must pray a great deal for France, for these days it is in great danger. Then she added:
– Go tell the parish priest to bring the children and the crowd here to pray.
After school, at 5 o’clock, the girls hurry back to the church, where a small crowd—just as the Blessed Virgin had wished—has already gathered: about 20 children and just as many adults. The beautiful Lady appears, but only the four girls can see her. The Lady asks everyone to sing the “Hail Mary.” And after an intense moment of praying the Rosary, she blesses everyone present and disappears.
The Miracle…
The next day, 150 people accompany the girls into the church. Jacqueline, on her mother’s advice, asks:
– O Lady, I beg you, will you perform a miracle so that everyone will believe you are here?
The Lady replies:
– I have not come here to perform miracles, but to tell you to pray for France, which is in great danger these days. But tomorrow you will see clearly, and you will no longer need to wear glasses. Come back to see me tomorrow at the same time.
The next day, when Jacqueline woke up, she immediately noticed that her eyes were not as they usually were. Since birth, she had had an incurable eye condition. Every morning, her eyes are completely stuck shut, and her mom has to come with warm water to pry them open. But that morning, for the first time in her life, Jacqueline opens her eyes all by herself, easily, and what’s more, she realizes she can see perfectly well, without her thick glasses!
Overjoyed, she ran to tell her parents: “Mom, Dad! The Blessed Virgin has healed me!”
When her parents saw that their daughter’s eyes had returned to perfectly normal, they were so happy they wept with joy. Her father, who had not believed in God, began to believe and ran to fetch the parish priest. When the priest arrives, he looks at Jacqueline’s eyes and, deeply moved, exclaims:
– “So it’s true that the Virgin Mary comes down among us!” And from that day on, he always helps the girls spread the message. Each time, the Virgin Mary asks everyone to sing the Hail Mary and to pray the Rosary.
And… she makes a great promise, saying:
– “There will be happiness in families.” Can you believe it? She promises that if the children and parents pray the Rosary, they will all be happy together. It’s wonderful!
Then, she insists again that we pray for France, which is in great danger.
The Children’s Prayer Saved France!
And then came the final apparition, on December 14: on that day, the church was absolutely packed, with more than 2,000 people! Hundreds more were outside because there wasn’t enough room inside the church. The Virgin Mary is more radiant than ever. She embraces the bouquets of flowers the girls offer her, then prays the Rosary with the deeply moved crowd. For the last 10 “Hail Marys,” she asks that they be prayed with arms outstretched in the shape of a cross, which everyone does.
When the Rosary is finished, Jacqueline asks her:
– O Lady, I beg you, give everyone a sign that you are here!
At that moment, something extraordinary happens: it is winter and outside the sky is completely dark, covered with heavy black clouds. But suddenly, inside the church, a dazzling ray of sunlight streams in through a very small windowpane, and the ray curves around a large pillar—which is completely impossible—and then spreads out like a large fan to illuminate the girls. They are then bathed in dazzling light, and the flowers they hold in their hands seem covered in diamonds, so much do they sparkle! The whole crowd lets out a cry of wonder: Oh!
Then, the Lady casts a loving gaze upon all those who have come here to pray to her, then she blesses them and disappears with the angel, into the beautiful dust of light…
Do you remember that France was on the brink of war—civil war? Well, right on the days when the Blessed Virgin appeared to the children, everything calmed down in France, peace returned, and by a miracle, war was averted!
France was saved by the prayers of four children!
Do you remember which prayer is so powerful that it can protect our families, our country, and the whole world?