The Grotto of Massabielle (Wikipedia)
In
September 1914, the first WWI casualties arrived in the Shrine of
Lourdes, following the bishop’s decision to make rooms that were usually
reserved for sick pilgrims available to the army. A soldier named Colin
came in with a broken arm and a shrapnel-infected wound.
The doctor
attempted an operation to remove it in vain. All dressing changes made
Colin suffer horribly and caused heavy bleeding. Gangrene soon set in,
alarming the nun in charge of him. She asked him if he would like to
receive the last rites, but he declined the offer, preferring a
non-religious burial.
The good Sister
started a novena to Our Lady of Lourdes. By the second day, the soldier
agreed to receive the last rites, but his condition worsened. The odor
given off by the injury was such that the nun had to isolate the patient
in the morgue, next to his coffin. She decided to redress the wound,
soaking it in water from the Grotto.
The next day,
the wound began to heal, to the amazement of the medical officer who
finally managed to extract the shrapnel. The patient healed and fully
recovered the use of his damaged limb.
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