Today, November 28, is the memorial of Saint Catherine Labouré.
Visionary of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal.
Catherine, the ninth of 11 children, came from a well-to-do farming family in France. When she was about nine years old, her mother died. Since she was deemed the most level-headed of the brood, Catherine took responsibility of the household.
She also had a religious vocation. She dreamt of St. Vincent de Paul, who encouraged her to join the congregation he co-founded with St. Louise de Marillac, the Daughters of Charity. Eventually, she became a sister in this congregation.
During Catherine’s novitiate in 1830, as she was asleep, an angel in the form of a child woke her up. The child led her to the chapel where the Virgin Mary appeared to her. A series of visions of the Blessed Mother followed, the highlight of which showed her the form of the medal. Mary told her to have a medal made out of the vision and that great graces await those who would wear the medal.
On this matter Catherine only told her confessor. No one else knew that the Virgin Mary appeared to her. Everyone in the convent knew the visionary was one of them, but they had no idea it was Catherine all along.
For the next 46 years, Catherine resolved to stay anonymous and humble in living out her life as a sister who served as door-keeper, nurse, and keeper of the chickens.
It was only shortly before her death in 1876 at the age of 70 that it was revealed that she was the visionary of the Blessed Virgin.
Catherine was beatified in 1933 by Pope Pius XI. She was canonized in 1947 by Venerable Pope Pius XII.