Sacramentals are holy things or actions of which the Church makes use to obtain for us from God, through her intercession, spiritual and temporal favors. Unlike sacraments which actually deliver grace, sacramentals prepare us to receive grace.
The sacramentals obtain favors from God through the prayers of the Church offered for those who make use of them, and through the devotion they inspire. The chief benefits obtained by the use of the sacramentals are: first, actual graces; second, the forgiveness of venial sins; third, the remission of temporal punishment; fourth, health of body and material blessings; fifth, protection from evil spirits.
The chief kinds of sacramentals are: first, blessings given by priests and bishops; second, exorcisms against evil spirits; third, blessed objects of devotion.
The blessed objects of devotion most used by Catholics are: Holy Water, candles, ashes, palms, crucifixes, medals, rosaries, scapulars, and images of Our Lord, the Blessed Virgin, and the saints.
Every Catholic should wear a scapular, medal, or any other sacramental. Also, every Catholic house should display images of Our Lord, Our Lady and the saints. The crucifix is a beautiful reminder of how great the love of God is for us.
In the following pages, we will talk about three important sacramentals: the Miraculous Medal, the Scapular of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, and the Medal of St. Benedict.
The Medal of the Immaculate Conception popularly known as the Miraculous Medal - was designed by the Blessed Virgin Herself! No wonder, then, that it wins such extraordinary graces for those who wear it and pray for Mary's intercession and help.
Our Lady manifested the medal to Sister (now Saint) Catherine Laboure on November 27, 1830, in the mother-house of the Sisters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul, 140 Rue du Bac, in Paris. Catherine relates the event:
"While I was making my meditation in deep silence, I seemed to hear a sound, like the rustling of a silk dress. Turning my eyes in that direction, I saw the Blessed Virgin near the picture of St. Joseph. She was well proportioned and so beautiful that I could not describe Her. She was standing, and Her robe was the color of the dawn, high at the neck, and plain sleeves. On Her head She had a white veil, which fell down on each side to Her feet. Her hair was parted in front and confined in a sort of coif, trimmed with a narrow crochet lace. Her face was quite uncovered, and Her feet were resting on a globe, of which about half was visible. Her hands were raised up to the height of Her girdle, in a graceful posture, holding another globe, which she seemed to press to Her Heart. Her eyes were turned to Heaven, and Her countenance was most beautiful.
"All of a sudden, the globe disappeared from Her hands, and Her fingers were filled with rings with most precious gems. From these, rays of light went forth to all sides, enveloping Her in such splendor that one could see neither Her feet nor Her robe. As I was absorbed in contemplating the Blessed Virgin, She lowered Her eyes to me, and said:'The globe which you see'(! understood Her to mean the one She had beneath Her feet)'represents the world, especially France, and every single person.'
"And then She added:'The rays are the symbol of the graces | shed on those who ask Me for them.'Then an oval frame was formed around the Blessed Virgin, on which these words were stamped in letters of gold:'O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to Thee.'The inscription was arranged in a semi-circle, beginning from Her right hand, and passing over the head, finishing at the height of Her left hand.
. "Then a voice was heard which said to me:'Have a medal struck according to this model. Those who wear it, after be. ing blessed, shall receive great graces, especially if they wear it round their neck. Graces will be abundant for those who have confidence.'At that instant, the picture seemed to turn round, and on the reverse one saw the letter M surmounted by a cross, with a big line at the base, and underneath the letter M were the Hearts of Jesus and Mary; the first, encircled by a crown of thorns; the other, transpierced by a sword."
Catherine asked how she was to have the medal struck. Mary replied that she was to go to her confessor, Father Jean Marie Aladel, saying: "He is My servant."
Father Aladel at first did not believe Catherine; however, after two years, he finally went to the archbishop, who ordered 2,000 medals struck on June 30, 1832. Almost immediately, the blessings that Mary had promised began to shower down on those who wore Her medal.
There was in Paris a renegade archbishop who had sided with Napoleon against the Holy See, and who had been excommunicated. The legal archbishop
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went to the bedside of the dying renegade. Through the new medal, which the good archbishop left, the renegade confessed - providentially, as it proved, because he died the next day.
In 1836, a canonical inquiry undertaken at Paris declared the Apparitions to be genuine. Catherine continued to keep her secret, only relating her visions to her confessor who, after forty-six years, advised her to reveal the story of the Apparitions to her mother superior.
On the last day of December 1876, Catherine passed into the arms of Mary once again, at the age of 70. She was canonized on July 27, 1947. Today, her beautiful remains lie fresh and serene - absolutely incorrupt; her eyes are a brilliant blue; her arms and legs are supple; she does not seem dead. If you go to 140 Rue du Bac, Paris, you can see the most beautiful eyes on earth and the still soft lips that for forty-six years kept a secret which has since shaken the world.
It is remarkable to see the number of people all over the world who wear the Miraculous Medal. When St. Maximilian Kolbe founded the Militia of the Immaculate in 1917, he deliberately chose the Miraculous Medal as the outward sign of joining the Militia. He called it a "bullet" by which evil can be overpowered with the help of Mary Immaculate. The medal is a wondrous shield against evil.
"No one should consider it strange that God works wonders through a medal. Does He not use water to cleanse the soul of original sin in Baptism? Does He not use oil to confer His graces in Confirmation and the Sacrament of the Sick? Similarly, He uses a medal, not indeed as a sacrament, but as an agent, an instrument, in bringing to pass certain marvelous results. "The weak things of this earth hath God chosen to confound the strong."
Is Paris burning? A brochure published by the Chapel of the Rue du Bac in 1946 relates a true story that happened at the beginning of World War II, on September 3, 1939:.
Mobilization is declared. At the chapel of the Rue du Bac, an aviator appears: His energetic face reflects the seriousness of the hour. He came to ask for miraculous medals, all the medals they can give to him: "Sister," he said, "I need a lot; it is to encircle Paris with the protection of the Blessed Virgin..."
The next day, in a daring gesture of total confidence to Our Lady, he let drop from his airplane thousands of small miraculous medals, surrounding the capital city with a huge invisible network, stronger than any army.
Once the war was over, everybody was amazed to see Paris still intact, with all its monuments, bridges, and churches. Serious historians reported that if Paris was not burned, it is because Commander-inchief Von Scholitz refused to obey Hitler's orders. One also reports the intervention of a Norwegian ambassador. God used these people to save Paris, thanks to the act of faith of one anonymous pilot, through the intercession of Mary.
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