(Depiction of the marriage of Saints Anne and Joachim, in Burgos Cathedral, Spain)

Happy Feast of St. Anne, mother of the Mother of our Savior!

"A lady from California came to spend a few days with Good Saint Anne [at the Shrine of St. Anne de Beaupre]. She came to implore light and courage. She craved interior peace especially. On returning home, she wrote to the Shrine: 'That peace which I sought vainly has at last returned. I see myself clearly now. I know where to direct my efforts. I realized at St. Anne's that my life must be gift, devoted to the happiness of others. I am now the happiest person in the world!...Smiling is once more easy for me. Singing, too. For I sense the presence of St. Anne. At Beaupre, what I sought most from the dear Saint was to be consumed by the love of God. I know that this prayer must have been heard. I am trying to supernaturalize everything I do....I thank the Good God for all that He has done for me...May Good Saint Anne keep me always in the friendship of my God!'"

~ Eugene Lefebvre, CSSR, A Land of Miracles for Three Hundred Years,1958.

This excerpt, taken from a book about the Shrine of St. Anne de Beaupre, in Quebec, Canada, shows how people make pilgrimages for spiritual healing, at least as often as they do for physical healing. On a recent pilgrimage which included Lourdes and Fatima, I saw my share of people who had traveled there for relief from physical ailments. But there were also many more who came to find answers to their inner problems. How encouraging it is to read these stories, and therein find light and peace in our own difficulties!