Our Lady
of Miraculous Medal

“Have a medal made according to this model. For those who wear it with confidence, there will be abundant graces”

Finally, the image turned, and Catherine saw the reverse side of the medal: the letter M surmounted with a little cross and two hearts, one crowned with thorns and the other pierced with a sword, below.

In the month of December 1830, during meditation, Catherine again heard the rustling sound, this time behind the altar. The same image of the medal appeared near the tabernacle, slightly behind it.

“These rays are the symbol of the graces that the Blessed Virgin obtains for those who ask them of her…You will not see me anymore”

This was the end of the apparitions. Catherine communicated the requests of the Blessed Virgin to Father Aladel, her confessor. He was not receptive to her message and forbade her to even think about it. This was a terrible blow for her. On January 30, 1831, Catherine finished her Seminary and received the habit of the Daughters of Charity. The next day, she set off for the Hospice of Enghien, which had been established by the Orléans family and was located at 12 rue de Picpus on the east side of Paris, in an impoverished neighbourhood where she served elderly men and poor persons for 46 years quietly and in complete obscurity.