“We receive this news with joy. The miracle is evidence that the Lord is still at work in our lives, in the Church, in our communities. A miracle is like the tip of an ocean of graces that happen in Lourdes. Beyond the miracle, there’s all the work the Lord does in our hearts, in the devotees’ hearts”. These are the first few words spoken by the bishop of Tarbes and Lourdes, monsignor Nicolas Brouwet, called by SIR on the phone to comment on the news of the official recognition of the healing of a nun. She is sister Bernadette Moriau, who had been suffering from serious paralysis for many years. Hers is the 70th miracle happened in Lourdes. “There is no rational explanation, there’s the Lord’s wisdom”, the bishop of Lourdes replies to the question as to why the Lord chose her to work a miracle instead of someone else. “He chose her – mgr. Brouwet explains – to provide evidence to the Church. That nun had not asked to be healed, she had begged for a conversion of her heart, in her pilgrimage. A bit like in the Gospel: Jesus does not heal everyone but just some, to show the world that the power of Salvation is at work in mankind. He does not heal everyone, He gives someone evidence through His miracle as proof that He is there and wishes for salvation, not only for the body but for the whole person”. Can the news of a healing having happened in the sanctuary of Lourdes arouse in some people the hope to receive a miracle “at all costs”? “Yes, it can happen”, the bishop admits. “But I think very few people come here to ask for the miracle of a healing. I mainly see people who come to Lourdes to pray and get stronger in their faith. In the sick who come to Lourdes, first of all we see the joy of living with others, to be surrounded by love, tenderness, listening and dialogue. Sickness is often experienced in loneliness. The real miracle of Lourdes is not healing, it’s other people’s love and it’s this new look with which one takes in other people’s weakness, that can change our hearts and our societies”.