Everything started in 1830 in the chapel at Rue du Bac of the Daughters of Charity, when Mary appeared to Sister Catherine Labouré. It was a moment in history when the world badly needed a concrete sign of nearness. Jesus sent Mary to show this love, this sign of closeness to the human person.

– Fr. Tomaž Mavrič, C.M.

In the following video we see the testimony of a Daughter of Charity who gives out Miraculous Medals among the sick of the Bambino Gesù Hospital in Rome. (Video was produced prior to the Covid-19 pandemic).

Transcription/Translation of the Video:

So, dear mama, I brought a Miraculous Medal that will be a great strength for you, a source of strength, a refuge, because a mother, like Mary, suffered and delivered all her tears to her son and has remained with us until the end. Therefore, for you it offers much hope.

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you. Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen.

O Mary, Mother of Jesus, pray for Domenico, for his family, and for all the babies, for all the children, who are here….

Each of us, as we go to our service, brings with her the Miraculous Medal as a very important tool for us, for the children, and for the families we go to serve. A picture, an explanation, and a brief prayer always accompany the little medal. We really propose it to everyone because we do not know the people yet. We start talking and, in talking, we find that even the mothers who are not Catholic willingly take the medal because, in this place of suffering, in this world of suffering, it is always a sign of trust and hope. Obviously, we explain it and pray together. It often happens that, after years, when parents come for a check-up with a child who had surgery or other therapy, they show us that, after four or five years, they still have the medal that we gave them. It was for them a great gift. Our Lady helped them to deal with their suffering, to overcome their fears, and to cling to hope.

The medal is very important for the children themselves. When they welcome us, they always, often, smile despite their suffering. However, very often, their glance goes to the medal. They begin to caress it, associating it with our presence, and this gives me much joy. … I remember once a little girl went into a coma after a year of oncology therapy. It was her last passage on earth. Tied on her hand was the Miraculous Medal I had given her a few days earlier. The little girl did not wake up … Two days passed and she opened her eyes for a second, caressed the medal, and closed her eyes again. I am sure she reopened them in heaven. However, this story, told by her mother, was a very important experience, because the mother, when she accompanied her on this final passage said, “Now you will go to the arms of a mother who will love you much more than I do!” and so she passed on to heaven.

Video courtesy of CMGlobal YouTube channel, made from an idea of Fr. Luigi Mezzadri, CM, and directed by Piotr Dziubak.